Essay Sample on The Search for a Theory of Happiness: A Historical Journey

Introduction

The history of rational thought is embedded in many long hours of theorizing and study, with an effort to discern what makes civilization s flourish or rise as well as what causes their disintegrate or decline. Throughout Western history, many thinkers have effortlessly searched for a measure that could be used to test the health of the culture. Usually, Humans struggle for some happiness in a world, which is unconducive to it. Human life is a collection of random memories, experiences, choices, thoughts, and interpretations; thus, a long-lasting state of indefinite happiness does not exist because everything is temporary. The pursuit of happiness fails to lead to a permanent state. This paper discusses what defines a good life, and examines the relationship between the good life and Wealth, and assesses the limitations, in which Plato's The Trial and Death of Socrates and Thomas More's Utopia represents on the "good life."

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What is a Good Life?

The dilemma of life is most people struggle to discover happiness and some meaning in it while being engaged in the irrational world. Throughout human life, expectations and high hopes prevail in their aspirations. The most common question is, what or how do you define and achieve happiness? This conceptual question is associated with another vague concept, which is mostly connected with satisfaction or well-being with life. Therefore, the good life can be directly linked with the state of greatest happiness. For an experience to be referred to as good, it should have positive effects and values, and also be meaningful. Early theories of "the good life" were articulated by ancient Greek philosophers. Socrates' ideas and thoughts are well-known through the works of his associates, especially Plato's The Trial and Death of Socrates. Plato highlights the significance of intellectual virtues as the supreme value of all things. According to Socrates, happiness is independent of external factors but governed by how they are used; and thus, living an honorable life is desirable as it results in a happier life (Nails, 2009).

In The Trial and Death of Socrates, Plato recounts the wonderful life to virtues such as justice, moderation, knowledge, and wisdom, and these are important in cultivating a balanced lifestyle and good character. As to Moral philosophy, Thomas More's Utopia has the same disputative descriptions in examining what adequately well for the mind and body. Thomas probes into the nature of pleasure and virtue, but the major dispute exists on the happiness of a man. According to the Utopian religion, there exist three fundamental principles: (1) the soul of an individual is immortal (2) God has selected the soul to be happy (3) God has fixed rewards for virtuous and kind acts and punishments for vice (Davis, 2017). These principles shape the behavior and attitudes of Utopian citizens in search of happiness in honest and enjoyable pleasures.

The Relationship Between Good Life and Wealth

According to Socrates, "the unexamined life is not worth living." Plato in The Trial and Death of Socrates describes that Socrates had certain beliefs that were founded on happiness. Specifically, Socrates suggested the acquisition of rational control over desires and also coordinating the various parts of the soul (Nails, 2009). Doing so would result in a divine-like state of inner peacefulness, which cannot be prejudiced by the external factors. True to his word, Socrates joyfully faced his death. Happiness is considered a rare occurrence that is reserved only for those individuals chosen by the gods. Socrates argues that the key to happiness is to turn attention away from the body and direct the attention towards the soul. The same argument is illustrated by Plato that Money or any possession is a conditional good, in which it can only be right under the care of a wise person. In Thomas More's Utopia, the society was under a communal living. Agriculture was familiar to them all. However, every man had some unique skills to which they applied, such as masonry, carpentry, and smith's work (Davis, 2017). According to them, no trade that existed was in high esteem among them. As the Utopian is communal, everyone learns a trade, and each family makes its own clothes. In such a society, no one is idle, and everyone is termed hardworking. This demonstrates the excellent relationship between good life and Wealth.

Limitations of "The Good Life"

Plato appears to have been fortified to embrace the ethical theories in the advances of harmonics and astronomy (Nails, 2009). The measure of pain and pleasure is offering the right habituation to individuals. Virtue is termed as the general accordance of emotion and reason. However, we should isolate the elements that make us hate by influencing the formation of pleasure and pain. Plato assumed ethics was responsive to quantification. This operated as the last criteria of goodness. Plato argues that life is based on a harmonious order, which is accessible to human knowledge. The rational power of More's Utopia is indicated in the range of its interpretations (Davis, 2017). These interpretations are based on a critique of the Christian humanist project of religious and social reform and socialism.

How Much is Enough? Wealth and Good Life

How much is enough? This question defines the basics of "the good life." Drawing heavily on Socrates, every rational individual needs a list of essential basic goods. Those goods include; harmony with nature, security from social or economic disruption, vitality and health, and ties of friendship and affection. By monetizing the economy, capitalism renders money on purchasing essential basic goods; thus, moral constraints die out.

References

Davis, J. C. (2017). Thomas More's Utopia: sources, legacy and interpretation. In Alternative Worlds Imagined, 1500-1700 (pp. 173-196). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

Nails, D. (2009). The trial and death of Socrates. A Companion To Greek And Roman Political Thought.