Jordan Peterson, Nietzsche, and Avoiding Living for Happiness Alone

“The resistance displayed towards these important thinkers is most regrettable, and for all the Complacent Men quick to criticize them, doing so makes you no closer to achieving your ever so desired—and elusive—’happiness.'”

Introduction

“Man has had to fight for every atom of the truth, and has had to pay for it almost everything that the heart, that human love, that human trust cling to. Greatness of soul is needed for this business: the service of truth is the hardest of all services.”  –  Friedrich Nietzsche (The Antichrist)

Let me first state that I am not arguing for the abolishment of pleasure or to criticize unduly the people who walk down the road of hedonism; I just would not suggest it. Likewise, there is nothing wrong with being happy; if it crosses your path, you certainly should not ignore it. But what I want to make clear is that making happiness an end-in-itself will make anything (or anyone) that stands in the way of that goal an enemy, especially those who are skeptical about it, like some public intellectuals who are gaining increasing popularity today. Jordan B. Peterson, for example, called it a simplification of life itself, and Slavoj Žižek  described happiness as fitting for the category of slaves. You can despise them (or me) all you want for destroying your fundamental goals in life, but let me first explain in more detail why I believe happiness is something you shouldn’t aim for.

The Intelligence to Conform

My first thought about the tendency to conform to simple ideas and philosophies has always been that differing degrees of intelligence were a factor. Many social psychologists agree with this, and there is even some evidence to support this view. But as of late, I find myself believing this explanation less and less. Regardless of the presence of bright individuals, the informational influence to conform—the process where people accept information from other group members in order to paint a picture of reality—still exists. When the majority within a certain group follows an ideology, theory, or idea, it’s very difficult not to conform to this.