Sigmund Freud's Concept Of Happiness

Sigmund Freud believes that the purpose of human life is probably unanswerable, but instead, tries to decide what man’s pursuit of happiness would entail. Most would argue that Freud is wrong and that life does have a purpose, and happiness is included in that purpose. Freud’s definition of happiness would include an individual following a path that avoids pain and pursues pleasure. Freud designated this view as the pleasure principal. This instinct is one that is naturally assembled at birth, or the part of our personality called the Id. Through the Id, one can acquire their basic human needs and joy as a child.
Freud also concludes that happiness is subjective. He states that life is not worth living if it is full of difficulties and barren

This method of looking at things, which seems objective because it ignores the variations in subjective sensibility, is, of course, the most subjective possible, since it puts one’s own mental states in the place of any others, unknown though they may be (Freud, 41). Unlike Freud, believes that having a purpose and finding happiness are connected in his book, “The Republic.” Plato determines that happiness can be created if our society is just. He describes this through his representation of a perfect civilization. From Plato’s teachings one can infer that to establish justice, one’s purpose, and happiness, one must establish several maxims in one’s life including specialization and moderation. Although Plato describes happiness on an individual and group level, he mainly views perfect as the quality of the happiness of the

Plato associates moderation with positive traits such as wisdom and manliness, and considers it vital for a utopian society. For example, if the city cannot control the education of its citizens, it cannot control the actions of its future leaders. Plato argues that through moderation and specialization, one could create a nearly perfect city. If the city as a whole is happy, then the individuals that inhabit the city are happy as well and will fulfill each of their purposes in life. “We take ourselves, then, to be fashioning the happy city, not picking out a few happy people and putting them in it, but making the whole city happy (Plato,