Finding Happiness In Rasselas, The Prince Of Abyssinia
Originally published in 1759, Rasselas, the Prince of Abyssinia by Samuel Johnson is a tale about Rasselas, the Prince of Abyssinia, who lives in a utopian valley. Rasselas is not content with living in the valley. He escapes and finds many wonders. I contend that this is a tale of finding happiness through contrast of experiences, sight of others’ opinions, and his own conversations with his companions.
One way the happy valley relates to the main concept of happiness is by establishing the base for the storyline. All of the plot following the first fourteen chapters in the valley is based off of the experiences and realizations that Rasselas acquires in the valley. The fact that Rasselas is not pleased when he has everything he could desire …show more content…
These people discuss their own separate experiences, but their stories all end the same way: for one reason or another, they are not happy. The shepherds from near Cairo are not happy because they “[consider] themselves as condemned to labour for the luxury of the rich (Johnson ??)”; the greatly prosperous man in the forest is unhappy because a new Bassa of Egypt could take his riches away; the hermit is unhappy because he has “lost so much, and [has] gained so little (Johnson ??)”; and the astronomer is unhappy because he believes he has to make difficult decisions regarding the weather. In the end, all the members of Rasselas’s party know that they can never be truly happy. They know that they want certain ways of life, but that they cannot obtain it. They all resolve to return to Abyssinia at the end of the tale.
Thirdly, all the philosophical conversations Rasselas has with Imlac and Nekayah contribute to Rasselas’s understanding of what happiness is. In chapter 16, they discuss what their choice of life may be. Imlac remarks, “‘... you will rarely meet one who does not think the lot of his neighbour better than his own.’” This is significant because all of the people that they meet in the future are not happy in their present condition. In chapter 28, all three discuss what greatness is. They conclude that Rasselas and Nekayah’s discussion about marriage they conclude that
One way the happy valley relates to the main concept of happiness is by establishing the base for the storyline. All of the plot following the first fourteen chapters in the valley is based off of the experiences and realizations that Rasselas acquires in the valley. The fact that Rasselas is not pleased when he has everything he could desire …show more content…
These people discuss their own separate experiences, but their stories all end the same way: for one reason or another, they are not happy. The shepherds from near Cairo are not happy because they “[consider] themselves as condemned to labour for the luxury of the rich (Johnson ??)”; the greatly prosperous man in the forest is unhappy because a new Bassa of Egypt could take his riches away; the hermit is unhappy because he has “lost so much, and [has] gained so little (Johnson ??)”; and the astronomer is unhappy because he believes he has to make difficult decisions regarding the weather. In the end, all the members of Rasselas’s party know that they can never be truly happy. They know that they want certain ways of life, but that they cannot obtain it. They all resolve to return to Abyssinia at the end of the tale.
Thirdly, all the philosophical conversations Rasselas has with Imlac and Nekayah contribute to Rasselas’s understanding of what happiness is. In chapter 16, they discuss what their choice of life may be. Imlac remarks, “‘... you will rarely meet one who does not think the lot of his neighbour better than his own.’” This is significant because all of the people that they meet in the future are not happy in their present condition. In chapter 28, all three discuss what greatness is. They conclude that Rasselas and Nekayah’s discussion about marriage they conclude that