Melissa, I'm not sure it's a matter of degree. I would define "content" as "not having anything making me actively miserable" and "happy" as "having positive things to feel good about." Is that only a matter of degree, or is it also a matter of kind?

In any case I definitely agree that feeling productive/purposeful is an important component of happiness. Aristotle, whose name came up in Tuesday's class, agreed with this as well. He distinguished pleasure from happiness, and defined happiness as involving balance and ethics and what he called "living well." I see something similar in your distinction between doing "fun" things and feeling like you're working towards long-term happiness.

I have to say I'm extremely skeptical of the idea mentioned here and in class that Americans are uniquely focused on happiness. To me that miscasts us as carefree hedonists, and denies the grim nature of our dominant worldview. Yes, there's a prominent strain of American culture that values instant (and often shallow) self-gratification. But I think that's much weaker than the part of our heritage that emphasizes hard work and self-denial and a lack of entitlement to help from society, and scorns happiness as a frivolous self-indulgence. When I talk to people from other countries (mostly South Asian, continental European or from Australia or New Zealand), they don't say they think we try to be happy. They say we're a bunch of overly driven Puritans who don't know how to take a vacation. At least, that's my experience. And I think that view is more accurate, because I don't see how a society that truly valued happiness would permit such a skewed work/life balance, or take such a stingy view of social welfare, or promote abstinence-only education because people who don't want to get pregnant or get a disease shouldn't have sex, or...etc.

I also don't necessarily think people give to the poor because they want to feel better about themselves. I strongly suspect many people don't feel better about themselves after giving to the poor, or doing some altruistic thing. They may just continue to feel tired and helpless. Happiness is an important part of human psychology, but I don't think we can explain everything as part of the pursuit of happiness.

-- AnjaliBhat - 26 Feb 2009