My Kingdom for Contentment

Summary

This article describes the writer’s short stay in Bhutan, a hereditary monarchy that is slowly incorporating some democratic measures. The country is unique in that its policies are guided by attempting to maximize the Gross National Happiness (GNH). The GNH is basically the highest level of wellbeing for the greatest number of people and promotes equitable land distribution, free medical care, and maintaining extended families.


Reaction

I’ve been to places similar to Bhutan and found myself, as well as others to be quite happy in these places. This article definitely emphasizes how simplicity and lack of material goods can lead to just as satisfying a life as one full of the latest technologies. Conversely, I also know in places that lack resources there is a yearning for something more. They realize that new technologies and goods exist and that they don’t have them. Externally, they seem so jovial, but there may be an underlying dissatisfaction cloaked by cultural mores. This makes me think of the “grass is always greener” phenomenon because there are many caught up in fast-paced, cluttered lives who pine for greater freedom and tranquility.

One somewhat disturbing aspect of the story was only mentioned briefly. There is a mandatory dress in Bhutan in which all men were identical clothing as do the women and freedom of speech is restricted. While the lifestyle there seems idealic in so many ways, lack of freedom is a fairly heavy price.


Tie-in to Carr, Cascio

The tie-in to the other two articles is a bit loose. What I mostly saw was the juxtaposition of the serene climate of Bhutan with our hectic, technology-laiden lives and the toll it seems to be taking as described by Carr. Carr is arguing that our minds are being rewired and not in a good way.

In Cascio’s article, he agrees with Carr that our minds are changing, but he says the changes are only in their incipient stages and that it’s too quick to judge the changes as either good or bad. He writes that it’s just another step in human evolution and touts the quixotic possibilities that man and ever increasingly powerful machines can create. Cascio paints a Utopian future ushered in by technology, but as Trey Popp describes in My Kingdom for Contentment, such Utopia’s can exist in today’s world and in much simpler forms. Rather than always trying to faster and better via technology, perhaps Bhutan has the right idea in seeking the highest Gross National Happiness.