Happiness or Joy?

I wrote this for my English class last spring, and I would like to share it with more people than just my professor. Let me know what you think.

Happiness or Joy?

If a person could choose to feel one emotion for the rest of his or her life, which would he or she choose? There is no doubt anyone would prefer happiness. But what exactly is happiness? Is it an emotion that can be sustained? And similarly, what is joy? Is it synonymous with happiness? Perhaps it has a different meaning. All of these ponderings could have different answers, but in order to conclude anything, a common ground must first be reached. As English philosopher, lawyer, and scientist Francis Bacon asserted, “...The  Idols of the Marketplace are the most troublesome of all: idols which have crept into the understanding through the alliances of words and names” (551). In this script the word “Idol” refers to an illusion or misconception. Bacon emphasized the importance of defining words, just as “Idol” was clarified. In order for people to reach a common ground, they must first have the same basic definition of the words they are discussing. In this case, that can be achieved by defining both happiness and joy. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary online, the definitions are as follows:

Happiness: 1. good fortune: prosperity 2 a: a state of well-being and contentment: joy b: a pleasurable or satisfying experience 3: felicity , aptness

Joy: 1 a: the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires: delight b: the expression or exhibition of such emotion: gaiety 2: a state of happiness or felicity: bliss 3: a source or cause of delight

The second definitions are the typical ways to define these words. Happiness is a feeling, while joy is more of a state of mind. A person can be happy and joyful at the same time. While it is not as common for a person to be happy and sad at the same time, a person can often be joyful and sad simultaneously. An example of this would be: a young boy gets to his favorite team’s basketball game. He anticipates it, and finally the day comes. The game is thrilling, but the team loses horribly. Although he feels sad about the loss, he still has joy because he was able to go.

 “Happiness depends on circumstances, but joy is independent of anything that happens to me.” – Rich Wagner

“Everything exists in limited quantity - especially happiness.”- Pablo Picasso

 “Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.” — Henri Nouwen

Happiness is a reaction to situations and conditions. Joy is a mind-set. A synonym of joy could be “a positive outlook” or “purposeful happiness.” Joy is choosing not to be upset. Happiness is the effect of a cause. Joy often causes the effect. Many different things make many different people happy- there is no one way to determine the root of sheer happiness. But joy can sprout from any and every circumstance, no matter the severity of goodness or badness. Doing so is often very difficult, but many times a person will find happiness from seeking joy in a situation. Searching for joy can lead to happiness.

Since there is no such thing as a perfect world, happiness cannot be sustained. Happiness is based on occurrences in a person’s life, and since bad things happen, no person can be endlessly happy. However, a person can choose to be joyful. While it is not likely he or she will be continuously full of joy, by choosing joy the person will be significantly happier. Neither happiness nor joy is an emotion that can be sustained, but joy is something that can last much longer since it is not nearly as fleeting as happiness.

The word ‘happy’ was first recorded in 1340 A.D., and came from the Middle English  word ‘hap.’ The Middle English word first came from a Norse word ‘happ,’ which meant a “fortune” or “chance.” The word ‘happiness’ eventually came to mean a “good fortune.” ‘Joy’ was around much earlier, first in 1225 A.D., and also came from Middle English. That word was derived from the original Latin word, “gaudia,” meaning a “feeling of pleasure or delight.” Even back then, the two words were not synonymous. Joy was described as a feeling, and happiness was a good circumstance. In today’s society, the definitions are becoming more distinct and even less synonymous. One doesn’t say “I am joyful that the weather is nice”- instead ‘happy’ is the preferred adjective.

To begin to understand the similarities of and differences between these two words, common definitions must be determined, as Francis Bacon stressed in his philosophy of The Four Idols. Although the definitions are quite similar, the two words are not synonymous.  Examining them from various viewpoints helps to determine just what they mean. A very important idea is that happiness is an emotion, while joy is a mindset. Even if all emotions point in the opposite direction, a person can still attain a level of joy. Though there is a noticeable difference between the two words, oftentimes today they are still interchanged. By defining the two words and searching for examples, however, it is very easy to distinguish between the two, in hopes of using the correct word to express one’s self.