Match the statements with the paragraphs.Defining Happiness1When Helen Keller (1880–1968) was nineteen months old, a brief illness made her both deaf and blind. Cut off from the world, she struggled to communicate her most basic needs. With such limitations, how could Keller ever be expected to find happiness?2Because happiness has been considered a personal concept, it is difficult to define. Many people throughout history have tried. Greek scientist and philosopher Aristotle (384–322 BCE) wrote, “Happiness depends upon ourselves,” which is not a definition but an observation that individuals are responsible for their own happiness. Roman statesman and philosopher Lucius Seneca (4 BCE-AD 65) wrote of a particular quality of happiness, saying, “True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future.” Seneca’s interpretation centers on the idea that you are happy when you are free from worry, but it, too, fails to define happiness. Indian statesman Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) came closer with the idea that happiness has a quality of being true to yourself: “Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony.”3Is there a scientific basis for happiness? Researcher Sonja Lyubomirsky suggests happiness is a matter of perspective: “...truly happy individuals construe life events and daily situations in ways that seem to maintain their happiness, while unhappy individuals construe experiences in ways that seem to reinforce unhappiness.” Basically, this means the way you choose to remember events and situations affects your happiness.4Some research concludes happiness is made up of three parts: pleasure, engagement and meaning. Pleasure involves things that give physical and emotional joy, such as playing a sport or seeing beautiful art. Engagement involves positive interactions with other people, such as studying or working with people whose company you enjoy. Meaning relates to feeling that your work is useful and important to others.5 Even with scientific rationalization, questions remain. For example, are younger people happier than older people? In fact, the opposite seems to be true. This may be because younger people tend to experience higher levels of negative emotions, such as anxiety and anger. The young also have less control over their lives because they lack both independence and the ability to make many of their own decisions.6Another question is whether wealthier people are happier than poorer people. Diener notes that some countries are better able to meet people’s basic needs—such as for food, clean water and health—and this leads to greater happiness. But beyond satisfying basic personal needs, more wealth does not seem to translate to greater happiness.7Perhaps the most important question is whether you can change how happy you are. Studies of identical twins suggest that genetics forms about half of your happiness level. Beyond this, your quality of life influences about 10 percent of your happiness. That means about 40 percent of your happiness is determined by your choices and actions.8 Helen Keller, despite the severe disabilities that left her unable to hear or see, was reportedly an extremely happy person, why? Lyubomirsky, Sheldon and Schkade note that aspects of happiness are partly “...determined by global attitudinal or meaning-based factors. Thus, a person who ‘suffers for a cause’ might still feel very happy because her suffering demonstrates her commitment to, and also perhaps moves her closer to obtain, an important life-goal”.9 From this explanation we can see that one way you can make yourself happier is to set goals. Keller had a definition of happiness in keeping with this idea. She thought most people didn’t understand true happiness and contrasted the idea of self-gratification with fidelity to a worthwhile purpose. She felt happiness did not come from simply trying to satisfy your own desires but rather by contributing your time and skills to improve the world in some way.10 How was Keller’s philosophy reflected in her own life? When she was seven years old, Keller was fortunate to meet a specially trained teacher, Anne Sullivan, who introduced Keller to the idea of letters spelled out in the palm of her hand. This allowed Keller to better communicate and learn Braille, a tactile writing system for the blind. Despite her limitations, Keller went on to learn to speak and sing, to write twelve books and to give lectures around the world, inspiring millions of people.11Even if you are unable to achieve a goal that makes the world better in some small way, simply trying will likely give your life meaning and, at the same time, happiness.