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comment by byonic
byonic  ·  2990 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: How to be Perfectly Unhappy

Time to break out my Philosophy 160.

It seems to me that language is causing most of the pain points here. When Mr. Oatmeal hears the word happiness it seems like he interprets it in a hedonistic sense, a state of permanent joy or euphoria.

However, when I hear the question "Are you happy?" I'm more likely to interpret it in a Greek eudaimonia sense; i.e. "Are you flourishing?", "Are you growing?", "Does your life have meaning?" which to me is the exact type of happiness the author is seeking out, and maybe what you're looking for OftenBen based on your edit.

I hope I'm not splitting hairs or redefining language with this. What do you guys think? Am I way off?





OftenBen  ·  2990 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I think that's an important distinction. If it's a hair that's split it's as thick as a log.

I prefer the eudaimonic sense of 'happiness' too. I could probably find straight up hedonism appealing for a while, but it's not sustainable.

Augh, english.