The Nature of Happiness (topic #1)
Dec. 7th, 2005 06:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
anhinga_anhinga(moderately distorted retelling from Russian, cf. also the info for ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
teoriya)
_rowan_tree_: What are the components of happiness? Or, if not components, then what the happiness consists of?
anhinga_anhinga: Happiness is when one has "the drive" and can act according to this "drive".
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anhinga_anhinga: Something as basic as happiness should be simple.
_rowan_tree_: Happiness? Basic?
anhinga_anhinga: Conjecture: to be happy it is necessary and sufficient to have "the drive" and to be able to "follow" it. Are there counter-examples?
_rowan_tree_: Counter-example: sometimes happiness is when does not have to "follow" anything. The presence of "drive" implies desires and desires more often lead to feeling of unhappiness, rather than happiness.
anhinga_anhinga: Indeed, this partial case is not covered by the conjecture. Of course, the problem with this variety of happiness is that it is brief, and must be preceded by [...]
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Update: the feeling of aesthetical pleasure from looking at something/reading something is covered by "the drive" conjecture, I think, e.g.:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/centralasian/1585841.html
Update 2: I actually changed my mind on the counter-example above. Happiness when one does not have to "follow" anything actually happens when and only when one has a strong desire not to "follow" anything (and does not "follow" anything). So it is still a case of having a strong desire and being able to act according to this desire, and hence not a real counter-example.
teoriya)_rowan_tree_: What are the components of happiness? Or, if not components, then what the happiness consists of?
anhinga_anhinga: Happiness is when one has "the drive" and can act according to this "drive".
*****************
anhinga_anhinga: Something as basic as happiness should be simple.
_rowan_tree_: Happiness? Basic?
anhinga_anhinga: Conjecture: to be happy it is necessary and sufficient to have "the drive" and to be able to "follow" it. Are there counter-examples?
_rowan_tree_: Counter-example: sometimes happiness is when does not have to "follow" anything. The presence of "drive" implies desires and desires more often lead to feeling of unhappiness, rather than happiness.
anhinga_anhinga: Indeed, this partial case is not covered by the conjecture. Of course, the problem with this variety of happiness is that it is brief, and must be preceded by [...]
*****************
Update: the feeling of aesthetical pleasure from looking at something/reading something is covered by "the drive" conjecture, I think, e.g.:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/centralasian/1585841.html
Update 2: I actually changed my mind on the counter-example above. Happiness when one does not have to "follow" anything actually happens when and only when one has a strong desire not to "follow" anything (and does not "follow" anything). So it is still a case of having a strong desire and being able to act according to this desire, and hence not a real counter-example.
