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[Sharing 2]The Unhappy American Way
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In the course of my travels in America I have been impressed by a kind of fundamental unhappiness which seems to me extremely common which poses difficulties for the social reformer.Most social reformer have held the opinion that,if poverty were abolished and economic security were guaranteed,the millennium wound have arrived.But when i look at the faces of people in limousine,whether in your country or in mine,I do not see that look of radiant happiness which the aforesaid social reformers had led me to expect.In nine cases out of ten,I see instead a look of boredom and discontent and almost frantic longing for something luxurious.
The brings me to the major cause of unhappiness,that is,most people in American act not on impulse but on a false psychology and a false ethic,which makes them view life as a competitive struggle in which happiness lies in getting ahead of your neighbors.
Now i will not for a moment deny that getting ahead of your neighbors is delightful,but it is not the only source of delight in your life.There are innumerable things which are not competitive.It is possible to enjoy food and drink without having to reflect that you havea better cook and a better wine merchant than your former friends to whom you now give a cold shoulder.It is possible to be fond of your wife and your children without reflecting how much better she dresses than Mrs.So-and-So and how much better they are at athletics than the children of that old stick-in-the-mud Mr.Such-and-Such.There are those who can enjoy music without thinking how cultural the other ladies in their women's club will be thinking them.There are even people who can enjoy a fine day in spite of the fact that the sun shines on
everybody.All there simple pleasure are destroyed as soon as competitiveness gets the upper hand.
