Geography of Bliss: Reading Questions for Dr. Brian Burke’s Brazilian Happiness class (2019)

Chapters 1 & 2: Netherlands and Switzerland

1) Eric Weiner, the book’s author, describes how we may be searching for happiness in the wrong places. So, for you, what IS a good life? According to the World Happiness Database in Rotterdam, where should we stop looking and where should we start looking for happiness as a species/culture?

2) What do Europeans know about happiness in countries such as the Netherlands and Switzerland?

Chapter 9: Bangalore,

1) India is a contradiction: Why is Mona (and other poor people in India) happier than most people who are poor in the ?

2) What does the Art of Living ashram or the artist colony at 1 Shanti Road have to do with the quest for happiness?

Chapters 3 & 4: &

1) What is Gross National Happiness and how has it shaped policy in Bhutan? Should nations focus on GNH (like Bhutan and Thailand) instead of GDP?

2) In the chapter on Qatar, Eric Weiner wonders: What if everyone had their own personal museum, actual buildings devoted to telling our stories? If so, WHAT WOULD YOUR MUSEUM LOOK LIKE?

Chapters 5 & 6: Iceland &

1) Like Iceland, many nations that top the world happiness lists are small, homogeneous, and egalitarian cultures. Why does this foster happiness?

2) Why is Moldova one of the least happy countries on earth? Why didn’t democracy make them happier?

Chapters 7 & 8: Thailand & Great Britain

1) Thailand focuses on pleasure and not thinking as a pathway to happiness. What’s the difference between pleasure and happiness?

2) In Great Britain, people do not typically demonstrate their happiness, but does that mean they are less happy than Americans? What were the results of the Making Slough Happy experiment?

Our goal for this class will be to update the Brazilian chapter to the Geography of Bliss, using our experiences in Floripa this month, and end by each answering the ultimate question: “How will you apply what you learned about happiness this summer to the rest of your life?” We will discuss this last question together in class in Socratic circles during the last week of classes.