Commenting on the text «Life's good! Why do we feel bad?» (Школьные сочинения)

The text now commented upon is taken from the Guardian, a British daily newspaper. The title of the text serves a brilliant opening as it carries information about the content, and the potential reader can easily predict what the text is going to be about.

The author is deeply concerned that nowadays people feel lack of happiness, and strange it may seem, but there are no evident reasons for it. House prices are getting more affordable, the quality of modern medical care is rising constantly and the mortality rates are dropping, but the humanity still feel not so good as it might be. The author gives reasonable explanations to that phenomenon, and the explanations can hardly be denied.

First of all, the author underlines that all goods which are created to make us feel happy don't do it for us anymore due to people practicing keeping-up-with-the-Joneses habit.

I completely agree with the author, buying a car for instance, will cheer us up until we find out that the neighbor buys the car which is a little bit faster, it's a common practice. Unfortunately, realizing that other people achieve or buy something can make us feel frustrated.

Secondly, the author points out that the power of money is relinquishing from day to day. Poor people will definitely like a pay rise, but for the majority income will not make the difference. I can't help agreeing with the author, getting more money is not equal to getting more happiness anymore. Nowadays the value of expensive things lessen.

Finally, it is mentioned in the text that modern level of medical care make it possible to prolong life dramatically and eliminate of most fatal diseases, but even these factors have failed to increase the level of our happiness. I suppose it's connected with our attitude to medicine, our expectations of it are raised too high and we really consider death as something extraordinary.

In conclusion I'd like to say about my personal attitude to what I've read. I completely support the author's ideas, the root of the «happiness problem» is about material needs. Trying to make a fortune and to keep in with other people, we often forget about such things as warm of interpersonal relations, which is more precious that palaces or fast cars.