Mark Kingwall wrote the article The Pursuit of Happiness in his 1998 book The Pursuit of Happiness: Better Living from Plato to Prozac. In writing this article, he explains that although it seems like the pursuit of happiness may be futile, it is something that people need and is essential, and how happiness varies from person to person . His thesis states that happiness is always different and therefore cannot be defined in a few sentences, but that people continue to base their lives on the search for happiness and trying to define it. The intended audience for this thesis is most likely university students majoring in philosophy, since the author is a university professor in Toronto. The author effectively argues his point of view in three ways: good organization, an unbiased tone, and research and textual support that lend credibility to his ideas, effectively arguing his point of view. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Kingwell begins the article by talking about man's needs to understand happiness and why it affects us so much in our daily lives. He also goes into great detail about how people try to define happiness; although in past centuries, philosophers have almost always failed in this endeavor. He goes so far as to claim that finding a dictionary definition of happiness in a single sentence is “a fool's game” (Kingwell, 248). In the article, the first thing I noticed was that the author was well organized in his thoughts and ideas. their execution of the paper. He states all his ideas very clearly up front, then the ideas of others before him, and finally the scientific evidence he uses behind all his claims. Not only does he keep all of his facts in one place, but he also doesn't flip-flop and stray from what he's talking about like some authors do. As I read the essay, I could very clearly see where each of his thoughts ended and the short stories began and, furthermore, each place where his thoughts or the research he provided was located. There was a clear reason why he was there, as when he moves from his opening paragraphs to his next idea: "No sentence beginning 'Happiness is...' is likely to do us much good." This segues directly into the next paragraph with “This is also a related and larger issue…” (248) This creates a very smooth and well-organized transition to his next idea, and although it did not interrupt the current thought; this gives room to move on to the next one. This is the clear sign of a clear and organized writer, which is important in an excerpt like this. Another way to do this is his example of how he moves from philosophical discussions to scientific studies, and how he organized his thoughts seamlessly without completely interrupting the previous one. This is important because it shows the sign of a very good writer. In the second part of the excerpt, Kingwell talks about great thinkers and philosophers who studied happiness and tried to find the root of it. It uses many quotes given by authors and philosophers well known for their ideas on happiness and its pursuit in general. He uses a quote from John Stuart Mill from his autobiography to show that the pursuit of happiness comes with many complications. “Ask yourself if you are happy and you cease to be.” (Mill, 249) Kingwell goes on to use many different quotes from othersfamous authors, some very similar to the first quote, and others that are quite different from what was previously said. Throughout the text, Kingwell maintains a very impartial view. tone in the extract. He never goes out of his way to say that other philosophers were right or wrong, nor to say what he believes about the things they wrote. He never really states his opinion one way or another throughout the entire text, meaning he never really says what his ideologies are when it comes to achieving happiness , nor whether this is actually feasible or not. There are very few times the author expresses his opinion in this excerpt, which gives his writing an unbiased tone. This allows him to prove his point much less pushy with his opinions and sets a much more relaxed tone to the audience. Another time you can see that Kingwell is unbiased is when he talks about what the author before him said, and he reiterates it in a way that we as an audience can understand, but there's always an even-handed air about what he writes, even though there could be plenty of room to place it. One of the final points the author makes in the essay concerns how genetics and rank in society can play a crucial role in your happiness. He supports his theory with data he obtained from studies carried out by scientists and geneticists, such as behavioral studies and surveys of different individuals. He uses a quote from David Lykken, a behavioral geneticist at the University of Minnesota: "People who have to go to work in overalls on a bus can feel just as happy as people who wear suits and ties and drive a Mercedes." (Lykken, 249). ) It all depends on your disposition as a person, and like some studies presented by the author, your entire genetic makeup and personality can affect your level of happiness towards a person. Additionally, Kingwell presents another study that seems to think that you are born one way or another, and that no amount of research or editing you do will ever change that. This shows evidence in the text to further push the author's argument. When an author not only has strong arguments, but also good organization, an unbiased tone, and solid evidence supported by facts, it makes what the author says all the more convincing. Furthermore, it is not just a branch of science or medicine that the author provides evidence for, which makes his essay all the more credible. While the data is not conclusive and does not answer all of our questions, it certainly fills some gaps in the authors' writings and creates a more compelling platform than it would be without it. Although I believe the author is effective in making their point in most of the essay, I do not think they are effective in making their point in any part of the excerpt. In the middle of the first paragraph he says, “Everyone thinks they know something about what happiness is; very few people succeed in convincing others that they are right” (248). I don't think this is entirely true, because there are millions of people listening to others and their path to happiness, and a lot of that is through social media or writing, e.g. one saying that following a TV diet will make you happy. A lot of people are going to agree with this statement, or even try it. Now, I agree with the author in the sense that not everyone will agree with this idea of ​​happiness or even follow it to the smallest detail..