Contents
Thomas Cole’s journey—and mine
2. What Makes Us Happy (and Doesn’t)
The strange illogic of life satisfaction
How unsuspecting economists (and apes) found the happiness curve
Time, happiness, and the curve of the U
Midlife malaise is often about nothing
Why getting old makes you happier
The happiness curve has a purpose, and it’s social
How to get through the U
Bringing midlife out of the closet
Praise for The Happiness Curve
Thomas Cole painted The Voyage of Life, which was strongly influenced by Romanticism, in 1842. The series of allegorically Christian paintings portrays the four stages of human life, which are childhood, youth, manhood, and old age.