Nullists challenge 'unhealthy obsession with happiness'

The Nullist Society has said that it views the constant pressures placed on people to find happiness can be both unrealistic and damaging. They also claim that their view is backed up by recent research into the so called Thoreau Syndrome. This syndrome is named after the American Philosopher Henry Thoreau who famously wrote: "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation." Some psychologists believe that the syndrome represents an underlying state of mind brought about by the fact that for the vast majority of people expectation is always a fraction beyond satisfaction. In other words, people either hope for or desire that which is, realistically, a little out of reach. Some have called this condition existential entropy.

Morgan Davies of the Nullist Society, speaking today, said: "Some people see happiness as the only good way to be. But who has decided that being happy is good and being unhappy is bad? Being happiness neutral or even a little unhappy have their positive sides: these too are valid emotional states and are more reflective than happiness. Being aware of unhappiness is also good, and feeling sorry for other people promotes sympathy. On the other hand the pursuit of happiness can be a selfish thing and even lead to unrestrained hedonism. We are convinced that this is, as usual, all tied in with the media and a consumer society that foists its norms on people for its own ends. It is clearly the emotional equivalent of insisting that women stay thin. Body shape is just the tip of the iceberg. The new collective tyranny is to tell us how to look, how to behave, how healthy we have to be, and how we should feel."