21st Century Literature discussion

Tragedy, depression, heartache, loss... these seem like the seeds for many an artwork (book or otherwise). Is it possible to write in an engaging fashion about happiness or contentment? If so, are there particular writers or books you think do this well?

I guess it can't be done for an entire novel, since fiction relies on conflict, but there certainly are some extraordinary novels that end with joy.

The first one that came to mind for me when I read your questoin was Falconer by John Cheever, which ends this way (and deserves to end this way):

He held his head high, his back straight, and walked along nicely. Rejoice, he thought, rejoice.

The second book I thought of was Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow, which ends in an utterly redemptive, joyous chapter, with the final sentence being:

I guess I felt it was my turn now to move, and so went running--leaping, leaping, pounding, and tingling over the pure white lining of the gray Arctic silence.

Two of my favorite books but I can think of many others that pull us up near the very end, to discover something wonderful about us humans.

Even The Grapes of Wrath does this uplift, even if the entire book seems so desolate and relentless. Right at the end comes along this dear bit of hope, in the final paragraph--

For a minute Rose of Sharon sat still in the whispering barn. Then she hoisted her tired body up and drew the comfort around her. She moved slowly to the corner and stood looking down at the wasted face, into the wide, frightened eyes. Then slowly she lay down beside him. He shook his head slowly from side to side. Rose of Sharon loosened one side of the blanket and bared her breast. “You got to,” she said. She squirmed closer and pulled his head close. “There!” she said. “There.” Her hand moved behind his head and supported it. Her fingers moved gently in his hair. She looked up and across the barn, and her lips came together and smiled mysteriously.

I don't know why my examples are all so old. They're the ones that have stuck with me.

Not exactly a response to the question you place, Marc, but I found it ironic for your question to closely follow reading this article about a Harvard longitudinal study which doesn't surprise me has been occurring, but of which I had not been aware:

https://medium.com/the-mission/want-a...

Note at end of article: "This article was originally published on January 25, 2018, by Patrick Ewers, and is republished here with permission. "

Good one! Ultimately no. Even with feel good novels such as the storied life of aj fikry And naive super have sad moments. If a novel was 100% happy then it would be boring. Unless you invent a character who is conflicted with happiness

There is always a dark side. Even in our happiest moments, isn't there always some touch of regret or fear or guilt? I think it's not so much that writing can't be about happiness, as that it requires contrast to be interesting, and believable.

I can't think of a book that's all happy. I'm reading Zora Neale Hurston right now, and felt like her Their Eyes Were Watching God was about happiness. It was a very hard won happiness though, which is more satisfying--in reading and in life, I guess.

I have to agree that no book worth its salt can be completely about happiness or contentment. How do you know if your happy or content without something with which to compare?

The first (and so far only) book that comes to mind is The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. In my review of this book in 2016, I said --
"In the book discussion questions at the end of the book, the reader is asked if reading this book was like eating comfort food! I loved that comparison and it is very appropriate. This was a comforting book. The crew of the Wayfarer were friends and family to each other - even the pain-in-the-butt guy became a true crew member. Yes, there was action and trauma, but collectively they got through it. The crew always had each other's backs."

I am sure there are others but this one has lingered.

The first thing that came to my mind was Hemingway's "Big Too Hearted River", which is more a story about contentment than happiness. I can't think of any good examples of novels or authors that deal in happiness, but I would bet that stories of travel / adventure / exploration or ones about a happy childhood or more comical stories might be the best candidates.

One barrier I think we find in coming up with examples is not as much the need for there to be crisis and conflict for there to be much of a story, but our tendency to not count a story as a fully "happy" one if there are any moments or elements in it that are less than happy. This is a standard we do not apply to other types of stories. A story does not fail to count as a "scary" story if it isn't frightening all the time or if there are moments of lightness and humour.

LindaJ^ wrote: "The first (and so far only) book that comes to mind is The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. In my review of this book in 2016, I said This was a comforting book. The crew of the Wayfarer were friends and family to each other

Chambers definitely writes 'happy found family' stories. I just finished her recent novella, To Be Taught, If Fortunate and it's the same way. Like Linda J says, not so much happy as heartwarming, or comforting. I normally don't like hearwarming stories, they get treacle-y fast, but I can handle Chambers - the science is a good counterbalance.

Marc wrote: "...Is it possible to write in an engaging fashion about happiness or contentment? If so, are there particular writers or books you think do this well? ..."

When one speaks of "happiness" as dealt with in books, three in particular come to mind for me, none of them novels:
The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom by Jonathan Haidt

Notes on How To Live in the World and Still Be Happy by Hugh Prather (I prefer this earlier edition to a later one with a similar name, but without "Notes on." I don't find a Goodreads entry for it, but used copies can still be purchased. The paths to happiness it describes may seem impossible, but sometimes those are exactly what work, imhe -- e for experience.)

The Infidel and the Professor: David Hume, Adam Smith, and the Friendship That Shaped Modern Thought by Dennis C. Rasmussen. A remarkable story of the bittersweet happiness friendship can offer.

Lily, thank you for making me aware of the book about Adam Smith and David Hume. I've read some of Smith's works and have lately been on a David Hume jag. This sounds very interesting.

Jan wrote: "Lily, thank you for making me aware of the book about Adam Smith and David Hume. I've read some of Smith's works and have lately been on a David Hume jag. This sounds very interesting."

It is, imo. I just included it in my attempt at a description of my 2019 reading highlights. Hope you find it the same, Jan. It came to my attention via colleagues on the Western Canon board.

My prime example for engagingly writing happiness in fiction is the early sections of Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh. My memory of the book, and in particular the series from the 80s, was of languid golden afternoons, young love, champagne and strawberries.

I reread Brideshead last summer to see exactly how Waugh sustained interest over that third of the book that was basically a love-in, and discovered that there was plenty of conflict: Sebastian's angst about his family and early signs of alcoholism. So maybe the short answer is no: you can't really just write about happiness for any length of time and make it interesting.

I've recently been reading through Amy Hempel's collected short stories. I probably would have answered this question in the negative, but then I read her story Today Will Be a Quiet Day and I changed my mind.