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Allison Scates
Dr. Seidler
Philosophy 102
1 April 2016
Can We Be Happy?
One of the hardest questions to answer is one so simple that it is frequently overlooked.
Are you happy? It is something asked every day, by mothers, fathers, siblings, or friends. It is a
question no one thinks twice about asking, but it can take a lifetime to answer. But is there any
right answer? Or are people so caught up in the pursuit of happiness that they forget how to
actually enjoy their life and achieve real happiness. In Anton Bruckners book Perpetual
Euphoria: The Duty to be Happy, he addresses this issue along with many other points such as
the Christian idea of happiness in the afterlife, the martyrs of the dull (pg. 84), the possibility
of a happiness gene (pg. 151), and impossible wisdom (pg. 206), specifically whether or not
we learn something from pain.
In the first section of the book, Bruckner speaks of how the Christians think, or at least
used to think, about happiness. In Christianity, particularly at the end of the Middle Ages, God is
all that is important and is also the only one who can supply true happiness. Everything outside
of him is supposedly false and will lead down the path of sin and deception. This is mostly due to
the fact that Christians believe that, in the eyes of the divine, humans are a fallen creature, and
they have to completely redeem themselves for their own existence, which makes it very difficult
to live happily on earth.
There is even an idea that stems from Christianity that is used much by even nonreligious
authors which states happiness existed yesterday or will exist tomorrow, in nostalgia or in hope,
but it never exists today (pg. 10). This is because, although we can have happy memories, and
we can look forward to the eternal bliss of paradise, the earthly desires people experience every
day are forbidden. And, unlike the beliefs of the Buddhists or Hindus, Christians only get one
chance to win over their Divine Judge (pg.10). That is, of course, until the Catholic church
introduced the idea of purgatory. All of the sudden, having a bit of fun in this life did not
completely forsake you in the next. Instead, it is possible to simply spend a relatively short
amount of time being purified and burning for the sins committed in life before proceeding on to
heaven.

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This is not the only change the church made. As time went on, medicines and anesthetics
became more advanced and easier to come by. This made the suffering required by the old
church harder to enforce. People begin to question why the divine would require suffering that
could so simply be avoided by the taking of a small pill. And with this realization comes more
questioning of the Bible. Bruckner even states, In this respect heretics and millenarians are
simply hasty readers who take the Bibles words literally and believe in their literal meaning.
They emphasize Jesuss inflexibility in order to challenge the petrified forms of the ecclesiastical
institution. The theme of happiness comes from Christianity, but it flourishes against it (pg. 25).
This was a common thought in the Renaissance, as the people were questioning their faith to
look at the joys that this world has to offer. When religion fights too hard against human nature,
the followers will not listen forever.
Bruckner makes another point on happiness in the second part of his book, specifically in
the chapter entitled The Extremists of Routine (pg. 84). These people that Bruckner refers to in
this way live in utter banality. The perfect example of this is the man Bruckner refers to as The
Emperor of Emptiness, Swiss author Henri-Frederic Amiel (pg. 86). He wrote a sixteen
thousand page diary in the 1800s, described by Bruckner as a monument to absolute emptiness,
a frenetic copying down of the void, because each day is characterized by the fact that nothing
happens (pg. 86). This man is especially unique for his unwavering dedication to the tedious
and repetitive (pg. 87). In addition, this journal in itself creates a brother in banality out of
the reader (pg. 89). One could wonder how someone like this could ever be satisfied with their
life. Bruckner even says, One might think our Swiss professor was tired of living. But Amiel
was hyperactive, drawing on great resources of energy to ensure that nothing happened to him.
However, in his own way, Amiel founded a new form of happiness. Unlike the Roman
hysteria, this is a neurosis peculiar to modernity (pg. 89). The Roman idea of the hero is
always stuck in a perpetual sense of immediacy, but Amiel lives from moment to moment, filled
to the brim with emptiness. He never is to know anything other than apathy. Even now, everyone
knows one of the extremists of routine (pg.84). There are always people who live their lives in
boredom, constantly avoiding social situations and sitting comfortably in their own little world of
solidarity. And not only do they lead their lives of apathy, but they do it with such incredible
enthusiasm that they derail the normal expectations of social interaction. As Bruckner says in the

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ultimate conclusion of this point, There are ultimately two ways of escaping banality: either by
fleeing it or by embracing it so tightly that one sabotages it from within.
In the third section of Bruckners book, he mentions the point of a possible
happiness gene (pg. 151). This idea was based on research done in 1970 when a team was
working to identify chemical presences in the brain, and if it had an effect on a persons sense of
humour or sense of pleasure (pg. 152). There is concrete evidence behind the fact that some
people seem to have a genetic predisposition to possess a higher aptitude for pleasure, stress,
pain, and aging (pg. 152). It has also been proven that certain people are more likely to struggle
with depression or anxiety, and some of this may be due to genes. However, can this be the only
deciding factor? Or is that too simple of a solution? Can some people be programmed to only be
able to reach a certain level satisfaction? As Bruckner said, in this reality, There would be, on
the one hand, anxious people forever condemned to adrenalin and serotonin, and, on the other
hand, the blessed whose brains are perpetually flooded with dopamine (pg. 152).
However, the author argues that happiness is something that cannot be broken down into
pieces with aspects to be contributed to various factors. Some of the happiness in life is all about
the unknown future. The fact that tomorrow is completely enigmatic offers a certain amount of
freedom and gives an almost unreal quality to the things people picture for tomorrow. In
Bruckners words, life always has the structure of a promise, not that of a program. To be born
is in a sense to be promised to a promise, to a future that shimmers before us and that we do not
know (pg. 153). This does not mean that the future is going to be completely flawless and full
of joy every moment of every day. There will always be difficulties that must be faced in any
time in life, but there is always the possibility of things looking up in that always unknowable
future. But that does not mean that everything must be faced with a smile. Some things should
not be trudged through with a false smile. After all, life always has the structure of a promise,
not that of a program. To be born is in a sense to be promised to a promise, to a future that
shimmers before us and that we do not know.
In the last part of the book, Bruckner brings up the point of what he refers to as
impossible wisdom (pg. 206). In this section, he asks the question, Does pain teach us
something? (pg. 206). Pain, like all other things, can have a purpose. But does it always? Pain
has many forms, and some of that is considered senseless pain. This is pain that does not have a
reason or cannot be given any meaning. This is the kind of hurt that remains unnamable,

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atrocious, and neither makes us wiser nor teaches us anything (pg. 211). For example, when
training for a marathon, a person puts their body through unbelievable stress and pain, but it is
endurable simply because it can be assigned reason. It is not considered a pointless hurt. Instead,
it is something Bruckner refers to as a good suffering (pg. 210).
There are also other purpose for pain. One good reason is it causes fear and caution in
people. Without pain, it would be nearly impossible to tell when people were doing thing that
were dangerous to their health and well-being. For example, without the knowledge that it would
hurt, why would someone avoid putting their hand on the stove? The pain that one experiences
from the burn is a signal that this action is damaging the body. In addition to this, pain is also
how a person knows if they have an illness or some other internal problem. Without the
discomfort sickness causes, people would have no idea what was happening within their own
bodies. But while certain kinds of pain do have a purpose, is that enough to make it worth it? Or
are we better off in our world of anesthesia, safe from the bitterness that meaningless pain can
bring us?
Bruckners Perpetual Euphoria is a book that contains many insights on happiness. He
mentions several different views on happiness and suffering that have recurred through history,
and also includes his own views throughout. His overall argument though is unlike those of the
other philosophers that he mentioned. Anton Bruckner implements his idea that the largest
obstacle to be happy is the pursuit of happiness. He believes that people are so wrapped up in
searching for happiness and desperately clinging to their ideal future that they miss their
opportunity to be truly happy. Chasing happiness is something that is counterproductive. In
reality, happiness has to be something that comes in time. Rather than finding happiness, people
are distracted by the ever-lasting search.
From the Christian ideas of happiness only being achievable in the next life to
considering pain and its reasoning, Bruckner has described happiness through and through.
While he disagrees with some philosophers and agrees with others, he sticks to his point. There
will always be suffering and pain, and there will always be hope and happiness. But the chase of
that happiness is what prevents people from ever truly experiencing it. Allow happiness to come,
and it will in time.

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Bibliography
Bruckner, Pascal. "Chapter One: Life Is A Dream And A Lie." Perpetual Euphoria: On
the Duty to Be Happy. N.p.: Princeton UP, 2010. 10-25. Print.
Bruckner, Pascal. "Chapter Five: The Extremists of Routine." Perpetual Euphoria: On
the Duty to Be Happy. N.p.: Princeton UP, 2010. 84-89. Print.
Bruckner, Pascal. "Chapter Eight: What Is Happiness for Some Is Kitsch for
Others." Perpetual Euphoria: On the Duty to Be Happy. N.p.: Princeton UP, 2010. 151-53. Print.
Bruckner, Pascal. "Chapter Eleven: Impossible Wisdom." Perpetual Euphoria: On the
Duty to Be Happy. N.p.: Princeton UP, 2010. 206-11. Print.