This new audiobook
about theories of happiness compares ancient philosophies
with modern research and professional studies with popular
culture for a comprehensive examination on everything concerning
what makes humans happy. Although scholarly in nature, the
tone is friendly (as professionally narrated by Ryan Vincent
Anderson) and the information is easily accessible. The central
metaphor introduced almost immediately and used throughout
the book is that of an elephant and its rider. The elephant
represents our unconscious thoughts and automatic responses,
and the rider symbolizes our conscious thoughts and rational
decisions. We are happiest when the rider and elephant cooperate
with each other. Readers need to grasp the rider/elephant
concept early because Haidt uses it frequently.
Each of the ten chapters examines ancient ideas about happiness
by exploring past and current research on the selected subject.
One such subject that’s inevitable in a book on happiness
is the study of passionate, romantic love versus calmer companionate
love. Studies by poets, writers, philosophers, psychologists
(and anyone else who can get a research grant), describe romantic
love as typically a short-lived, though more intense, happiness
than companionate love. The author concludes that couples
who last for decades tend to enjoy companionate love.
Other topics examined include the issue of self-esteem’s
effect on happiness, dealing with trauma and anger, social
constraints versus freedom, and working toward goals as opposed
to achievement of goals. Some of the results are what readers
might expect, while others could be surprising. The author
also endorses three reliable techniques that can work individually
or together to help most people achieve happiness, at least
temporarily, if not longer: meditation, cognitive therapy,
and Prozac (and similar mood-enhancing drugs that alter the
brain’s chemistry).
Haidt, a psychologist and professor at New York University,
provides a well-researched, carefully analyzed multi-disciplinary
approach to understanding happiness. This isn’t a self-help
book with step-by-step instructions on how to achieve happiness.
Instead, this book is for thinkers who want to understand
if they are unhappy by nature or by nurture, and what they
can do to overcome their current state of unhappiness. As
presented, the implementation of this important information
can lead to a happier life by bridging communication and cooperation
between the rider and the elephant.
|