38 pages • 1 hour read
Eric WeinerThe Geography of Bliss
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2008A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
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BetaChapters 8-10Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 8 Summary: “Great Britain—Happiness Is a Work in Progress”
English people are more reserved; they are critical of pushy Americans. Instead of seeking happiness, English people seek to get by. Nevertheless, England has more recently had policy planning based on the science of happiness.
At University College London, Weiner visits the skeleton of Jeremy Bentham who developed the utilitarian philosophy: the idea that the government should promote policies which deliver the most happiness for the greatest number of people. In his calculus, one can subtract the unpleasant from the pleasant to find the level of happiness for a person or a country.
England has a tradition of unhappiness; and the town of Slough, in particular, has a reputation as a very unhappy place. Six happiness experts on a television show in the town of Slough attempt to change the psychology of the area. The experts measure the happiness of Slough residents compared to that of other English people. Residents then perform activities to increase happiness, such as tai chi or hugging. 12 weeks later, the Slough residents have increased their happiness by 33%, above even the top-scoring countries.
When Weiner calls Richard Stevens, a happiness expert from the television show, Stevens responds rudely, unlike his happy presence on the show. Stevens describes his personal recipe for enhancing happiness: Buddhism, evolutionary psychology, positive psychology, and South American dancing.
Weiner then visits Slough. The town seems dull. A barber tells Weiner that the city is conveniently located and recommends the local museum where an exhibit also mentions the convenient location of the town. At a pub, a patron named Geoffrey complains about Slough, but has chosen to spend his life there—this kind of stream of complaint, nicknamed “moaning,” is a commonplace of English life.
Weiner meets several participants the in TV show experiment. Heather White, a nurse, dislikes Slough. Weiner describes her as happy, but she may have been happy before the show. She believes that dogs and gardens increase happiness.
Richard Hill, who dislikes Slough because it’s multicultural, just had his first heart attack at 30 years old. Despite his health, Hill says he is happy. Veronica Puglia says the show made her happier, but she attributes this increase in happiness to meeting new people, instead of the science of happiness. Puglia believes that money is the key to increasing happiness: She has met a happy lottery winner, while after the show, she became less happy after losing her job.
Weiner argues that increasing the happiness of more residents may pass a tipping point and make a whole town happy; however, even with the number of people who went on the happiness show, the town remains bleak: “In Slough, I can’t avoid the facts. The viral theory of happiness never took hold” (273).
Chapter 9 Summary: “India—Happiness Is a Contradiction”
Weiner goes India, a country he visits every year after first coming there on assignment for NPR. The World Database on Happiness has a low score for India, but Weiner understands why wealthy westerners visit impoverished India for happiness. India, historically, has absorbed past invaders, and now, India is becoming more American.
Weiner visits Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (or “Guru-ji”), a popular guru near Bangalore, but finds the reception cold. Indians attend the ashram, as do a few foreigners, two of whom tell Weiner that the retreat in ashrams like this one brings material difficulty but spiritual benefits.
A higher-ranking follower named Ami orders his followers to abstain from alcohol or caffeine for the next several days and shows them a breathing technique called sudarshan kriya. Attendees describe seeing colors, but Weiner does not see anything. Weiner is skeptical about gurus, and the experience bothers him. However, he wants to be like Ami. Weiner interviews some of the other attendees. Binda, a software engineer, does not understand why Weiner wants to quantify happiness. Indians like their country for its unpredictability. Weiner goes to see Guru-ji in person. After speaking to the group, the guru answers written questions. Weiner’s written question asks whether any ideal is higher than happiness. The guru answers that love is higher.
At a building run by an artist named Suresh, people drink coffee and smoke. Some complain about Bangalore’s rapid growth, while others say that they like India, including its sounds. Weiner complains about the dirt and noise, but defends gurus against criticisms. On the terrace, Weiner sees the diversity of a large country.
Weiner goes to parks and cafes with Suresh and some of the other visitors. At one, he meets Meena, a journalist. Meena also complains about India becoming more American—busy and in rush.
Near Suresh’s building, a poor woman named Mona says that she is happy, and that thinking too much causes unhappiness. Robert Biswas-Diener, a happiness researcher, has interviewed hundreds of poor people from the streets of Calcutta and from Fremont, California. The Calcuttans, despite having fewer resources, are happier. Another happiness researcher, Sundar Sarukkai, is “eager to talk about ambition, the one noun that, more than anything else, has sabotaged my search for happiness” (304). Sarukkai says that Americans pay a high price for ambition. Indians also have ambition, but after trying let fate form the results. Relaxing, Weiner is happy.
Chapter 10 Summary: “America—Happiness Is Home”
The day after Weiner returns to Miami, his friend Craig dies of a heart attack. Weiner decides to move to Miami.
The US ranks low in regard to collective happiness, and it’s not surprising:
Since 1960, the divorce rate has doubled, the teen-suicide rate tripled, the violent-crime rate quadrupled, and the prison population quintupled. Then there are the increased rates of depression, anxiety, and other mental-health problems (309).
People often fail to predict what makes them happy. Unhelpfully, the self-help industry insists that happiness is within, instead of being found in community. This kind of philosophy prevents people from making the kind of lifestyle changes that would bring more happiness.
Americans have more wealth than many other countries, but blame lack of money for unhappiness. Americans work longer hours and commute farther than most other countries: “Commuting, in particular, has been found to be detrimental to our happiness, as well as our physical health” (309).
Still, Americans remain hopeful: “When it comes to thinking about happiness, pondering it, worrying about it, cogitating over it, bemoaning our lack of it, and, of course, pursuing it, the United States is indeed a superpower” (311).
Americans often move, sometimes in search of happiness—something that has worked for the people Weiner met abroad. However, research on the happier places in the United States shows contradicting results. The differences within the country are not as large as the differences among countries.
Weiner’s friend Andy is leaving Miami for Asheville, North Carolina, scared by Hurricane Andrew and annoyed at the rudeness of Miamians. Cynthia Andros grew up in Miami and then moved to Asheville, after calculating her expected happiness and seeing advertisements. She is happy in Asheville. Laurey Masterton went to North Carolina to confront her fear of snakes and ended up settling in Asheville. As many people move to Asheville, they will necessarily introduce new conflicts to the area, which, ironically, may decrease happiness.
Chapters 8-10 Analysis
These last chapters address attempts to change happiness levels through individual or group actions.
In the notoriously unhappy English town of Slough, scientists set out to increase the happiness of enough locals to change the happiness set point of the whole community. The attempt to make Slough happy shows what the science of happiness can and cannot do. People return to their baseline happiness level despite changes like meeting other people and incorporating other tactics shown to increase happiness. On the basis of the Slough television show, it seems that increasing the happiness of a few people does not increase the happiness of an entire town.
Westerners flock to India’s ashrams to become happier, hoping that obeying the instructions of the gurus there will change their lives. They experience India’s diversity of people, perspectives, color, and noise, noting that Indian people have a more relaxed attitude than Americans, which allows them to be happy while also being sad. Happiness in India seems to stem from deeply formed social bonds, which is something ashrams also cultivate.
Finally, Americans who are unhappy in the flashy city of Miami move en masse to the more relaxed vibe of Asheville, North Carolina. In America, the self-help industry promises that happiness lies within each individual, implying that people who are unhappy are at fault. However, much of one’s happiness level clearly stems from one’s environment. Miamians who are not a good fit for the culture of that city, which prizes material wealth and relentless ambition, hope that they will instead be more adapted to life in the more casual and less go-getter Asheville. However, this influx has an unintended consequence: The city of Asheville is changing in ways that will challenge its character and possibly lead to decreased happiness for its residents.
