Write the explanation of the essay entitled "The Road To Happiness

Write the explanation of the essay entitled “The Road To Happiness”. (Part-1)

Ans.

Explanations

(1) In fact, contempt for happiness is usually contempt for other people’s happiness and is an elegant disguise for hatred of his own happiness in favour of something that he thinks nobler, he is apt to remain envious of those who enjoy a lesser degree of nobility, and this envy will, all too often, make those who think themselves saints cruel and destructive. In our day the most important examples of this mentality are the communists.

Reference to the Context: These lines are an extract from the essay, The Road to Happiness’ written by Bertrand Russell. The writer suggests the ways of finding out true happiness in life after removing obstacles which come in its way.

Explanation: There are some real moralists who have been hating happiness. They criticise the philosophers like Epicurus who had been in favour of happiness in life. The writer makes it clear that such mentality is because of contempt for general happiness, specially for the happiness for other person’s happiness. They think that there is something more important than happiness, so they hate such happiness in favour of that imaginary noble quality.

The writer asserts that these moralists are against those simple people who enjoy simple things to remain happy. The morality hate the happiness. of those common people whom they regard less noble. In this way, even the saints of the good people from the common people appear to be cruel and destructive for them. All those persons who support happiness and they enjoy its pleasure, they are cruel by their heart as well as cruel to the poor. They are happy but the moralists regard them as the giver of unhappiness to other persons. According to the writer, the modern communists are the real example because they are mostly envious to the happiness of other persons.

(2) It is a commonplace among moralists that you cannot get happiness by pursuing it. This is only true if you pursue it unwisely. Gamblers at Monte Carlo are pursuing money and most of them lose it instead, but there are other ways of pursuing money which often succeed.

Reference to the Context: These lines are an extract from the essay, The Road to Happiness’ written by Bertrand Russell. The writer describes the views of the moralists in relation to getting happiness.

Explanation: According to the writer, pursuing happiness is something which should not be hated or opposed as something unworthy even if such natural impulses often lead to excesses leaving as a bad taste afterwards. The writer shows the idea of the moralist asserting that happiness cannot be achieved because it is running away from the grip of a man or because it seems to be near at hand.

The writer describes that the attitude of the moralists in favour of happiness is not right because it can be achieved when it is pursued in the right The writer further makes it clear that happiness can be achieved by getting fulfilled material needs as well as satisfaction from them. The gamblers playing gamble at Monte Carlo may gain money but most of them lose money in place of earning it. According to the writer there are some other ways of getting money and the people who try in this direction become successful in their efforts of getting money.

(3) Epicurus pursued it by living in congenial society and eating only dry bread, supplemented by a little cheese on feast days. His method proved successful, in his case but he was a valetudinarian and most people would need something more vigorous.

Reference to the Context: These lines are an extract from the essay. The Road to Happiness’ written by Bertrand Russell. The moralists assert that we cannot get happiness by pursuing it, or by acting unwisely. Gamblers pursue money to get it.

Explanation: The writer says that those who pursue happiness in a wrong manner cannot get it. Drunkards cannot get happiness because of the excessive use of wine. On the other hand, those who act wisely get happiness. The writer gives the example of Epicurus who pursued happiness by living in a favourable society with good people. In this way, he was living among his friends with unity and harmony which helped him in getting happiness.

The writer further says that his food was very simple including dry bread with a little cheese only on festival days. It was a good manner when he achieved happiness by his simple living style. He was conscious about his health, so he used to eat simple food as his regular habit. This method proved successful because he was careful about his good health. Many other persons could not succeed by his methods so they should be more active to get true happiness by living better and more wise life.

(4) For most people the pursuit of happiness, unless supplemented in various ways, is too abstracted and theoretical to be adequate as a personal rule of life. But I think that whatever personal rule of life you may choose, it should not except in rare heroic cases, be incompatible with happiness.

Reference to the Context: These lines are an extract from the essay, The Road to Happiness’ written by Bertrand Russell. Some persons make the search of happiness in a theoretical manner as they think it right.

Explanation: Many people need happiness in their life and they try to get it in different ways. There are for them some set rules which they follow in their personal life with the hope of getting happiness. On the other hand for many people their personal rules are not enough to give them happiness. Its reason is that their such rules are very abstract and theoretical and they are not practical with greater chance for their success and happiness.

The writer further says that the common people cannot follow such rules in their real life, so happiness is running away from them. According to the writer, the people should make use of any kind of rules which they should use in a careful manner so that they may help them in getting happiness in a real way. Their such rules should go with true happiness. It is very necessary that the rules chosen by them should not be very stiff and stupid. On the other hand, their rules should be according to the contemporary circumstances. Some persons are of free and heroic nature that they do not care for the rules of life. They think that they can be happy in any circumstance.

(5) But there are many humbler forms of the safe kind of pleasure. Many men who spend their working life in the city devote their weekends to voluntary and unremunerated toil in their gardens, and when the spring comes they experience all the joys of having created beauty.

Reference to the Context: These lines are an extract from the essay, “The Road to Happiness’ written by Bertrand Russell. The writer suggests to make activity to get happiness.

Explanation: The writer asserts that one way of getting happiness is by taking part in some useful and happy activity. It should be noted that all persons cannot be perfect writers and artists. What can be the happy activity for such gentle and common people so that they may get true happiness in their life?

The writer suggests that there are some humble and common people who take part in their activity to get real happiness. Their such happy activity may be gardening, they work in their gardens after their return from their city office. They spend their weekends working in their gardens but they do not get any payment for their such work. They work hard with the hope of getting good result in future. When the spring season comes, their garden blooms with many coloured flowers which give great happiness to those persons who have worked hard in their garden. The writer makes it clear that such gentle and ordinary persons are happy and proud of having created such great beauty. It is the result of their own efforts. In short, they are satisfied to look at such great beauty and they get true happiness.

(6) It is impossible to be happy without activity, but it is also impossible to be happy if the activity is excessive or of a repulsive kind. Activity is agreeable when it is directed very obviously to a desired end and is not in itself contrary to impulse.

Reference to the Context: These lines are an extract from the essay, The Road to Happiness’ written by Bertrand Russell. The writer asserts the great need of self-activity to achieve his main purpose to achieve real happiness in one’s real life.

Explanation: The writer makes it very clear that for a man it is impossible to get real happiness without self activity which should be done properly and according to the need of a person. He further says that to get real happiness is impossible for true happiness if the activity of a person is too much, or it is of repulsive nature.

The writer further says that the activity of a person should be suitable to his nature and need. It is also necessary that his activity should be performed directly and towards the main purpose of that person. It should be noted that his activity should not be opposite to his nature as well as against his need. The writer also gives the example of a dog and its activity according to his nature as well as suitable to his freedom and need.