Many individuals hold onto their own qualifications of what happiness really is, and how it is delivered to them. Of these common answers, however, no real satisfaction can be gained from such simple apparatusesㅡ people only believe wealth to correlate with happiness since society’s standards have led us to believe so. Those who do possess said wealth, power, or status understand that such titles are only mere fabrications and hold no true value to them. Sadly, however, the rest of society is led to believe that such ideal wealth, the American Dream, is theirs to uphold as well. Only after great affluence is gained will one realize that emotions triumph over wealth; the wealthy individual understands that a more luxurious lifestyle does not correlate with, nor include happiness-- rather, happiness is found in things that hold personal value to the individual, not the market.

Happiness can be found in abstractions one lacks. An influx of affluence matters surprisingly little to those who are already wealthy. People who already have money do not find satisfaction or content from the status and wealth they possess; these upper classes look to other things to find the happiness they are looking for. Individuals will never find happiness through the company of money; they require the presence of companions, family, or loved ones to experience the laughter and joy they bring about together. As psychology professor David Myers describes, “intoxication will give way to time; the madness of joy will fume imperceptibly away; the sense of his insufficiency will soon return; [and] he will remember that the co-operation of others is necessary to his happiness”. After one’s thirst for wealth is quenched, the seemingly sated individual will once again feel empty and seek to satisfy his/her loneliness with other things they lack. Only after gaining everything they had desired will people realize it is not enough, and only then will they understand that money is not the happiness they search for.

Money cannot buy the happiness inside an individual. Surely, the sudden blessings of a larger wealth can conjure up momentary feelings of content and satisfaction within an individual, but the feelings of gratitude and fulfillment will soon run dry, and the newfound riches will amount to nothing once again. Unfortunately, society leads its members to believe that the American Dream is theirs to uphold as well, and the community is constantly swept up in its crazed race to the top. To those who lack it, wealth appears to be a trophy, the ultimate reward given to only a few individuals in the race of life. However, only those who do possess this iconic prize understand that wealth is not the answer to happiness-- money’s value drops and these entrepreneurs will seek something more meaningful to satisfy their thirst for joy. The paradox that exists is as follows: those without money seek it, and those with money seek happiness in other things. Whether these feelings come in the form of love or friendship, true happiness does not come in the form of any market values nor does it correlate with wealth; happiness has no price tag.

<Moses Chang West Ranch High School 11th Grade>