Xuen Tey - Week #11 - Buying Happiness
“Money can’t buy happiness,” for some reason, is a phrase that I have heard that I’ve never quite understood. To me, the only people who would say such things and mean it are those who have never known what it is like to be poor.
While the statement is factually true, in a real-world perspective, it rings as a clear lie. If you take the saying literally, yes, happiness is not a tangible object that can be bought. However, in a more practical sense, happiness can technically be bought. Happiness can come from many places, many of which involve the use of money.
Some can find happiness in looking pretty, and with money, one can buy better clothes and have more resources in order to look nice and be happy. Others find joy in going to see interesting things, and trips to exotic and special places require money. Some relish in the excitement that their loved ones feel when recieving special gifts, and with money, they can buy more gifts and find more unique gifts.
Those who parrot this phrase and boldly declare it to all who hear are likely those who do not comprehend just how valuable money is, and all of the issues that arise when one is without it. Even if one only has a little amount of money, it can buy food and water for a person, giving them hope for the future. Having money means having a steady source of food and water, it means being able to have a roof over one’s head, money assures people that they can live properly without stressing over resources.
Having money means having steady access to food, water, clothes, and a roof over your head. Having money means you can buy what you want, when you want to. Even though money cannot buy tangible happiness, it can bring joy and happiness when used properly.
Hey Xuen! I’m sure many believe money is able to bring some form of happiness with physical purchases. A dollar candy bar when you’re depressed might provide a little bit of joy. The many problems of families in poverty are probably able to be resolved with money—it’s a bit insensitive to claim money can’t buy happiness when there are so many poverty related issues. It does work when trying to avoid overindulging in consumerism, but there’s far too many instances of money leading to positive experiences that the saying does feel lacking. My happiness is fueled by monthly Spotify payments and buying limited edition versions of my favorite books that I like to think of as a reward for my hard work so I don’t feel as bad for wasting money.
ReplyDeleteBut can money really unlock true happiness of overwhelming, or does it merely provide enough for contentment? It’s not that money can’t buy happiness, but money can’t replace loss or something that doesn’t exist. Money can’t fill in the hole of yearning, of grief, of loneliness, or that of many abstract emotions. Even a crazy amount of wealth can’t bring back that one song that was entirely eradicated from the internet four years ago, always coming back as an earworm but is always incomplete with some parts of the song being faint memories. There’s far too many things that can’t be fully satiated with monetary purchases.
Hi, Xuen. Whenever the conversation of whether money can buy happiness gets brought up, I often find myself getting slightly frustrated. In my opinion, money most definitely can (and does) buy happiness. However, in no way does that mean that access to money will suddenly eradicate all possibilities of negative emotions or actions in one’s life. That’s not what I define as “happiness.” I believe the access to money can significantly improve one’s ability for happiness and satisfaction in their life. That doesn’t mean that every rich person in the world is always joyful or “happy,” BUT, it does mean that they have opportunities that allow them to achieve said happiness. A plethora of wealth significantly and drastically improves the quality of one’s life. Without having to worry about money, as most people do, they essentially eradicate a lot of unnecessary stress or worry. While rich people certainly do have problems, they usually aren’t as significant as those facing poor people. The poor usually have to work tirelessly, doing manual labor from day to night with little food or pay. So, it’s hard to understand how a person with money, who doesn’t have to work another day of their life if they don’t want to, somehow argues that their money doesn’t buy happiness. It seems ignorant and unnecessary for a rich person to argue that their opportunities, wealth, higher emotional well being, etc. somehow don’t qualify for a higher quality of “happiness” than if they didn’t have them.
ReplyDeleteHi Xuen, I really enjoyed reading your blog this week not only because I enjoyed our conversation about this very topic during class yesterday, but also because I agree with every single thing you wrote about in your blog. I fully believe that money doesn’t only buy happiness, money is happiness to me. I know it sounds very extreme but I do honestly believe that if you have money you are happy. No matter how alone you are, if you have money you will be fine. You can pay for therapy, you can pay for expensive trips in first class, you can pay for tour guides, companions, and even friends. Sure will money be the source of the attention that you receive, yes, but honestly if you have the money to do what you want, does it matter? It is really annoying when people say “money can’t buy happiness” because either they are too rich to know what the other side truly feels like, or they’re too poor and have given up hope on becoming wealthy. Like you said, some people find happiness in trips, or seeing interesting things, or gifts, but money is at the root of all of that. True happiness comes from one’s ability to be able to acquire or work for that money, excuses given to the contrary usually come from people who are unable to commit to hard work and standing up to adversity. Anyway, I really enjoyed your blog this week. It was a very relatable read and I was very happy to see someone who agreed with my opinions, because usually whenever this topic comes up it leads to an argument over two polar opposite opinions.
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