Henry David Thoreau: Breaking Away From Society

Across generations over centuries of time, people have yearned to achieve freedom: freedom from materialistic possession, freedom from responsibilities, freedom from society. Breaking away from society and establishing one’s own identity struck most individuals, like writer Henry David Thoreau, as hopeful and adventurous. Thoreau took the challenge in 1854 to fulfill this desire of freedom from society by building himself a house far from civilization (Thoreau 6). By removing himself from the materialistic world and breaking all connections with people from the nearby city, Thoreau attempted to experience freedom within nature. Although one might argue that freedom comes at the cost of breaking all social ties, Jonathan Haidt clearly proves

in Happiness Hypothesis that people must create relationships, value others as much as they value themselves, and extract meaning from our interactions in order to achieve and understand true happiness (Haidt 133).
Haidt suggests in his studies that people must maintain stable relationships by interacting with others (Haidt 134). Emile Durkheim, a psychologist who studied suicide rates, provided studies that explained what factors contribute to an act of suicide (Haidt 133). His research provides evidence that the absence of social ties, constraints, and responsibilities actually contributed to increased chances of suicide. With a lack of these responsibilities and constraints, some may argue that this profound freedom will lead to individual contentment. For example, Thoreau explains in Walden his physical and mental separation from society (Henry David Thoreau's Walden: Summary and Analysis). By living apart from the city, the writer placed himself in an environment where he could block out other individuals and their actions and solely concentrate on his own. If an individual were to follow Thoreau’s footsteps and remove oneself from interactions, then he or she cannot foster a life of happiness. In actuality, Haidt explains further that a life of so-called “freedom” brings individuals closer to the end of life (Haidt 133). Haidt utilizes Durkheim’s elaborate research on suicide rates to explain the long term effects of growing up without a stable base of relationships.
Haidt explains why we need emotional interactions and relates this explanation to relevant examples in human history and our current society. Humans are an ultrasocial species and in an evolutionary aspect we need other individuals to help us in terms of survival: hunter-gatherer system and safety in numbers (Harvey). Even in our society today, people use connections to move up to higher positions and climb the ladder of success in terms of reputation, wealth, and respect. Although the evolutionary purpose of raising offspring was to pass down genetic information for increased survival, most parents today decide to raise their own children for emotional attachments and eternal bonds; and studies by Durkheim prove that married people with children have one of the smallest rates of suicide (Haidt 133). Our species has evolved from focusing on survival to thinking critically and creating relationships for emotional support, humane connections, and love. Reading Happiness Hypothesis, readers receive the message from Haidt that reputation and wealth are not components of true satisfaction in life; rather, those with stable connections and social responsibilities are the happiest.
In addition to creating social ties with others, humans should value others as much as individuals value themselves. Haidt asserts that it is not enough to create relationships with multiple people and expect to live happily. Humans should intertwine and build emotional bonds together like vines supporting each other as they grow upward (Haidt 133). Seneca the Younger, a Roman Stoic philosopher, shares advice on how to be a more devoted Stoic in Epistulae Morales Ad Lucilium (Letters from a Stoic) and states that “no one can live happily who has regard to himself alone and transforms everything into a question of his own utility” (Haidt 133). The world was not created for a single individual to live selfishly, feeding off of others. Instead, the world was created for people to share bonds, ideas, and love. Valuing oneself as much as valuing others encourages an environment in which humans look after each other and exchange feelings of trust, companionship, and belonging. If people did not value each other to the equivalent of how much they value themselves, then relationships would be at a surface level, reaching a tit for tat system, or doing to others as they do to you (Haidt 49).
Some may argue that “hell is other people” and resent any type of relationship (Haidt 134).

Jonathan Haidt, however, shares that respecting connections after forming them is key to happiness because our bonds would not flourish if one individual believed that his or her part in the bond was more beneficial than the other’s. My roommate Yvette and I express gratitude towards each other and care for each other in our dorm and outside of college. Our connection is based on trust, security, and friendship; however, if I were to solely receive her support and take without reciprocating, I would not be valuing Yvette as much as I value myself. If this were to continue, our friendship would be bland and eventually nonexistent. Breaking this friendship would hurt my well-being and Yvette’s as well. I pondered on what distinction separates a relationship of basic needs and that of trust and love and found through Haidt’s book that the key distinction is respecting others as my

equal.
Haidt also motivates people to take a step further beyond fostering relationships: extracting structure and meaning from these connections.

Freedom from social obligations and constraints may seem appealing at first glance because an individual is free to act according to his or her own rules and ignore other rules of conduct (Haidt 133). Inconsequently, this freedom from society may encourage people to abandon their jobs, homes, and marriages in search of personal fulfillment and satisfaction (Haidt 133). Haidt argues that leaving these responsibilities is counterintuitive to pursuing happiness because these social obligations provide people a stable base of relationships to build upon. Cutting connections with one’s family and community will bring an individual further from experiencing happiness in one’s life; however, fostering relationships within one’s social circles will provide a sense of belonging and purpose in an individual’s

life.
Before the chapter of love and attachments, Haidt uses an example comparing the satisfaction levels of two individuals: Mary, a middle class lady who attends church and community events and Bob, a young man who has reputation and wealth (Haidt 87). The question Haidt asks his readers is, “Who do you think is happier?” (Haidt 87). Some readers may answer that the rich man is living life to the fullest because he has a successful, stable career that earns him reputation and wealth. Very few chose Mary because of her old age, health problems, and low income. Haidt, on the other hand, clearly points out that Mary is emotionally stable and supported by multiple social circles: church, community, and family. Using this concrete example, Haidt provides his findings that people need these social circles to belong. These social interactions and connections push people to depend on others and create a chain reaction of reliance.
After reading Haidt’s book on the path to a happy life, I found myself feeling a range of emotions. From agreeance to disbelief, Haidt has convinced and argued against my beliefs on what it takes to achieve true happiness. Although the sentence “freedom can be hazardous to your health” may seem ironic, Haidt proves that this statement is true (Haidt 132). As I mentioned before, humans have dreamed to live freely from society; however, Jonathan Haidt is a true pioneer in shedding light on living freely amidst society. Haidt embraced the challenge to outline the key components in a content life and daringly placed himself in society by publishing this book. In conclusion, I follow Haidt’s suggestions in his book Happiness Hypothesis that people must interact with others, value others as much as individuals value themselves, and extract meaning from the relationships people foster to achieve and understand true happiness (Haidt 133).