In class yesterday, we spoke of the graph from Daniel Gilbert's Stumbling on Happiness. It followed the marital happiness of couples throughout their children's age. Most studies indicated that marital happiness was at its lowest when the couple had teenagers. This may be true, but what about the happiness of teenagers themselves?
I found a really interesting article(click HERE) about the happiness of teenagers. It claims that due to the high depression rates among teens, England proposes to "teach" happiness in school, namely positive psychology. This seemed a bit disturbing to me. I don't believe happiness can be taught. In fact, the more pursued it is the more intangible it becomes. Teenagers have this notion that it will all get better in a little bit. Once they graduate, go to college, party...life will all be better.
So what is the American thought behind happiness in teens? Children anticipate their teenage years with great anticipation. And most adults believe teens are angry and miserable. Just think of the term "teen angst." Yet, most adults look back at their teen years in awe. I have met many an adult who is living in their past, just like Gatsby. Gatsby was at his happiest in his early adulthood and the rest of life was left to pursue that lost happiness. Going back to my last blog post, I think it really is all about living in the moment. It seems that people either spend their time looking towards their future for happiness or reliving the past to attain the happiness they once possessed. It makes me wonder...Is happiness itself an American Myth?
Your post is so interesting Valerie! Your post really made me think about all the times an adult has said to me "these are the best days of your life". I agree that teenage years can be filled with happiness and joy, but they are also filled with depression and stress. I'm specifically thinking of an ad that I see on TV every once in a while. It talks about bullying, and what teenagers have to face. Their slogan is "It gets better". There seems to be two opposing ideas about teenagers. One is that they are living the best days of their lives, the other is that they are living the worst. But which one is it?
ReplyDeleteI really like this connection to Gatsby, Val. As for "teaching happiness", you should explore this further. I had my psych/soc students experiment with this idea a few years ago: http://traitcurious.blogspot.com/2006/09/what-if-im-not-trait-curious.html
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