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I would like to have read much more, for example, on the levels of happiness (and how it is measured) as experienced in capitalist, communist and social-democratic societies. In the chapter entitled 'Bread and Circuses', Nettle presents a table denoting average life satisfaction of individuals in the West and developing countries during the early Nineties. The populations of the Eastern bloc show the highest degree of dissatisfaction. No surprise there, perhaps.
But why are Switzerland and Sweden, two countries with diverging political economies vying for the personal contentment honours? It can't simply be because they both enjoy nice countryside. Only a later passing reference to the role played by a strong sense of civic responsibility provides a possible answer. Britain, since you ask, comes in eighth out of the 40, ahead of France, but behind the US and Chile.
On a similar theme, there is little here on the history of happiness or, rather, its historiography. While it would seem to be almost a human right of today's homo sapiens, did our forefathers regard it in the same way? The Greeks formed opinions on the matter, but one would think that until Freud came along, there had been a philosophical void. And why have socialist and capitalist societies and, latterly, new age mysticism laid claim to deliver this commodity in a way that religion or pre-revolution monarchy never quite dared?
It is not that the author ignores the influence of class, ideology or gender in determining happiness, it is just that he appears reluctant to be drawn into conclusions on what are obviously sensitive, non-quantifiable fields. 'Happiness is a lot like love. If you have to ask whether you are in it or not, you are probably not,' reads his opening line. It's a slightly awkward start
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I had similar questions on why countries and happiness after reading Layard and Seligman. Why are disparate poor countriy-folk ( Nigerians, El Salvadorians, Vitenamese and Indonesians...) as happy as Europeans when the countries are so much poorer and much less stable?
The opening line is really bad, which puts me off. But this quote is good:
"Natural selection doesn't care about our happiness. It just wants us alive and making babies, miserably if need be."
The New York sun has an intruiging review, which puts Nettle back on to my "to read" list:
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Daniel Nettle supplies at least part of the answer [as to why Americans buy into
self-help scams] in "Happiness: The Science Behind Your Smile" (Oxford University Press, 216
pages, $21). Discussing new research in social and evolutionary
psychology in a short, dense, and highly accessible account, Mr. Nettle,
a lecturer at England's University of Newcastle, fingers nothing less
than evolution as the enabler of Dr. Gray, et al.
"Evolution has given us a strong implicit theory of happiness," writes
Mr. Nettle. "We come to the world believing that there is such a thing
as achievable happiness, that it is desirable and important, and that
the things that we desire will bring it about." Alas, he notes, "It is
not self-evident that any of these are true." Indeed, that's an
understatement. It turns out that our "pleasure system" and our "system
of desire" often work at cross-purposes, either leading us to pursue the
wrong things or leaving us unsatisfied if we attain them.
While this dynamic serves an evolutionary purpose - in direct and
indirect ways, it helps our genes to be fruitful and multiply - it
doesn't make our lives one long Tuesday with Morrie. Yet, as Mr. Nettle
makes clear, the best research shows that most of us, regardless of
circumstance, are more happy than unhappy. What's more, our general
level of happiness seems to be set fairly early in life and, with the
exception of short periods following both good and bad events, remains
relatively stable until we shuffle off our mortal coil. Suckers that we
are, most of us do think we'll be happier in the future, which leaves us
open to the predations of SHAM.
Although highly skeptical of self-help, Mr. Nettle does offer up his own
"design for living." Following William James, John Stuart Mill, and
others, he counsels readers not to worry too much about happiness per
se. Rather, we should strive to live a productive, interesting life. He
ends his book with a quote from Nathaniel Hawthorne: "Happiness is a
butterfly, which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but which,
if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you."
Leave aside the fact that Hawthorne was a haunted, gloomy sort, wracked
by historical guilt, and even more annoyed at "the damned mob of
scribbling women" who sold better than he did. His advice about
happiness seems right on - and in any case, far cheaper than a $6,995
Life Mastery Seminar from Tony Robbins.
Mr. Gillespie is editor in chief of Reason magazine (www.reason.com).
http://www.nysun.com/article/16523
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