Robert Waldinger gave his Ted Talk on the topic of happiness which is one of the hardest things to define in a lifetime. What is it that truly makes an individual happy? A survey was taken on millennials and 80% of them said a major life goal was to get rich and 50% of those people said another major goal was to become famous. However the reality of life is that not everyone can be rich and not everyone can be famous. According to this Ted Talk, happiness is not hard to gain in your life, and is much simpler than most believe. Robert Waldinger was a main factor in the conducting of a seventy-five year long study on human development called the Harvard Study of Adult Development. They tracked the lives of 724 men and repeatedly asked how there work was and what kept them happy and healthy. Two groups of men were tracked through the duration of the experiment. A group from the poorest part of Boston and a group that started as sophomores at Harvard University. Social mobility was a key factor in the American dream and it was evident through this experiment, "Some climbed the social latter from the very bottom to the very top, and some traveled that the other way around." However, the point of this study was not to inquire about each persons success, but how happy they were. There was one reoccurring theme throughout the study, "...the clearest message we get from this seventy-five year study is good relationships keep us happier and healthier period." It has been proven that people with stronger ties with family and friends are healthier and live longer. Also, the most toxic thing in one's life is loneliness.
Robert Walbinger mainly establishes ethos and relies heavily upon it. He states how he is the fourth director of the study giving him a credible position. Also, the fact that the study has been going on for seventy-five years means that he is presenting credible information to the audience. A lot of logos was presented as well in his presentation. He stated many statistics about what people thought of happiness, success, and what their goals were. He used much of his information directly from Harvard University. Pathos was also evident throughout because the topic of the Ted Talk was happiness. Since happiness is something every person wants everyone can relate to it on a personal level.
This ted Talk directly relates to the American Dream because happiness and success are often achieved together but not in all cases. This reminds me of The Great Gatsby because Gatsby achieves great wealth but is lonely, therefore not achieving happiness or the full American Dream.
Robert Walbinger mainly establishes ethos and relies heavily upon it. He states how he is the fourth director of the study giving him a credible position. Also, the fact that the study has been going on for seventy-five years means that he is presenting credible information to the audience. A lot of logos was presented as well in his presentation. He stated many statistics about what people thought of happiness, success, and what their goals were. He used much of his information directly from Harvard University. Pathos was also evident throughout because the topic of the Ted Talk was happiness. Since happiness is something every person wants everyone can relate to it on a personal level.
This ted Talk directly relates to the American Dream because happiness and success are often achieved together but not in all cases. This reminds me of The Great Gatsby because Gatsby achieves great wealth but is lonely, therefore not achieving happiness or the full American Dream.