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Aspen Kortmeyer

Professor Ditch

English 115

December 9,​ 2020

Project Space Essay

In the following three writings: ​“How Happy Are You and Why?” by Sonya

Lyubomirsky, “Living with Less” by Graham Hill, and “The Sources of Happiness” by Howard

Cutler and the Dalai Lama ; we see each author use rhetorical strategies to argue the way we can

live a life with more happiness. ​ I found the chapter​ ​“How Happy Are You and Why”, which is

from the book titled ​How of Happiness​ by Sonja Lyubomirsky, to present the most effective

argument.​ Lyubomirsky is not only extremely credible but she also used pathos and logos

strongly throughout the chapter by presenting a lot of research and sharing stories that take an

emotional appeal towards her audience.

The author ​Sonja Lyubomirsky,​ wrote the chapter “How Happy Are You and Why?” I

found Lyubomirsky to be the most persuasive writer because she backed up her points with

multiple studies and scientific research. ​Her strong use of ethos, pathos and logos is the reason

she presented the most effective argument. ​ ​Lyubomirsky is a social psychologist, professor, and

graduate of Stanford University (Lyubomirsky 179). All of her knowledge and skill through both

practice and education make her an extremely credible source which is where the use of ethos

came in. ​Lyubomirsky included ​studies from​ several​ different individuals who were seeking

happiness and were willing to share their very personal stories that really go into their values and
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emotions, this approach is a perfect example of the use of pathos. The author also used pathos to

share her belief which was: ​if you focus on the good times instead of the bad, then it is easier to

find joy in life. ​Lyubomirsky made​ the point that no matter how many challenges one may have

in their life, happiness is a matter of perspective and mindset​ (Lyubomirsky 186-186)​.

Lyubomirsky conducted her own research and “published more than 80 different articles and

book chapters” she really focused on “the development of sustainable happiness and cultural

influences on the pursuit of happiness” (Lyubomirsky 179).​ ​Later​ in the chapter, ​Lyubomirsky

used logos by referencing studies she has participated in and ​providing a four-item “Subjective

Happiness Scale” that she created which is weighted to measure one’s current levels of happiness

(Lyubomirsky 183)​. She also included a 3-item pie chart detailing the 3 components that

determine happiness: your score or “set point” based on the happiness scale, your circumstances,

and your intentional activity ​(Lyubomirsky 184).​ All of Lyubomirsky’s research points towards

the idea that ​“it appears that each of us are set with a happiness set point, a characteristic

potential for happiness throughout our lives” (Lyubomirsky 190). ​Lyubomirsky​strongly

demonstrated that although happiness may be rooted in our genes, happiness is also a state of

mind, it’s inside of us, and that happiness is truly within reach for everyone.

The article “Living With Less” was based on the personal story and experience of the

author Graham Hill. Hill used pathos and logos to share his story and to convince the reader how

an overabundance of things could begin to consume your life with stress and worry. He explains

how he became financially successful when he earned a large sum of money from the sale of a

start-up company, but he began to spend more money on unnecessary things ​(Hill 309)​.​ Hill’s

life started to unravel with stress, he said “My life was unnecessarily complicated” (Hill 309).​ He
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had two homes on different coasts, which meant that he had empty spaces to fill with furniture

and gadgets, electronics, and appliances​ (Hill 309)​.​ The more space he had, the more he felt he

needed to purchase and this led to more things he had to become responsible for. Throughout

Hill's article, he explains that he was unable to maintain happiness and found himself extremely

overwhelmed and stressed out, but he eventually realized that having a lot of unneeded “stuff”

was the root of all of his problems.​ ​Hill ​supported his claims​ by using logos, he included

research about enormous consumption and it’s global and environmental effects from credible

sources like UCLA and the Natural Resources Defence Council​ (Hill 310).​ Hill explained

through the use of pathos​ that after he eventually gave up his unnecessary spending and found

himself feeling more fulfilled, less stressed, he learned that experiences and relationships are far

more important than material things.​ Hill strongly expressed that the key to happiness is

understanding that less is more.

In the final given text “The Sources of Happiness” by Dalai Lama and Howard Cutler,

the authors argue that ​ long-lasting happiness is more achievable if ​you​ approach life decisions

with​ happiness ​being your main goal (Lama & Cutler).​ The authors ​strongly​ used the rhetorical

strategies ethos and pathos ​throughout the article​.​ I recognized the use of ethos right away once

we learned that,​ ​“​Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of Tibet who serves his community, while

Howard Cutler is a psychiatrist and author​” (Lama & Cutler 28).​ ​This gives both of the authors

credibility and the ability to easily build trust between them and their audience.​ ​Directly after the

author's introduction we see pathos come in, ​they begin ​interviewing their friends in order to

discover each individual's mindset through their stories and emotions. This gave them evidence

that backs up their belief of “Happiness is determined more by one’s state of mind than by
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external events”(Lama & Cutler 22). After comparing stories and digging through research,

Lama and Cutler came to the realization that we measure our happiness and level of satisfaction

by comparing ourselves to others ​(Lama & Cutler 23).​ ​The authors​ included experiments that

lead us to believe that if we change our perspective and stop comparing ourselves to those who

are more successful, then we can live a happier, more satisfied life. They strongly believed that

“in order for an individual to be able to fully utilize the sources of happiness towards the goal of

enjoying a happy and fulfilled life, ​your state of mind is key​” (Lama & Cutler 24)​. With the

evidence they collected through comparing different people's stories, they proved that one's inner

worth is where their true happiness lies. If you only find happiness through financial success or

title, it will only be temporary happiness because if you somehow lose those things, then you will

lose happiness. At the end of the day you will only be happy with who you are ​as a person​ and

not what you have.

In conclusion, ​using the rhetorical strategies:​ ethos, pathos and logos will strengthen an

author’s argument. Each author of the ​text we were given​ made strong points about where

happiness within our lives comes from.​ Graham Hill shared his personal life experience and

compared his results with research in order to strongly get his point across and Dalai Lama and

Howard Cutler were both extremely credible sources who argued with the power of emotions

and used research to back up the reasoning behind each feeling. ​In my opinion, I ​still ​believe that

Sonja Lyubomirsky presented the strongest argument,​ not only because she has an impressive

professional background but because she referenced studies, shared scientific research and went

as far as hearing personal stories from​ real people who are easy to relate to.
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Work Cited

Lama, Dalai & Howard, Cutler. “The Source of Happiness.”​ Pursuing Happiness​, 2nd ed,

Matthew Parfitt, Dawn Skorczewski, pp. 21-32.

Lyubomirsky, Sonja. “How Happy Are You and Why?” ​ Pursuing Happiness​, 2nd ed, Matthew

Parfitt, Dawn Skorczewski, pp. 179-197.

Hill, Graham. “Living With Less. A Lot Less.” ​ Pursuing Happiness​, 2nd ed, Matthew Parfitt,

Dawn Skorczewski, pp. 308-313.