Complex Numbers

Good Enough

Well, this is a trick question.

PROMPT November 15th

What does “a good life” mean to you?

The reason it's a trick question is that "good" has too many definitions.

It can indicate a desirable state: good news, good quality, a good road, etc.

It can demonstrate a subjective opinion: a good movie or book, good food, whatever.

It's a moral judgement: she's a good person, he does good deeds.

It describes an emotional or physical state: she feels good, he looks good, a good time.

It indicates skill: he's good at writing, she's a good painter.

It's a simple compliment: You're a good kitty. (I say this a lot even when it's not strictly true.)

And there's probably more, including the (mis)use of it as an adverb, substituting for "well," as in "You cook really good."

French is no help in this regard, by the way. You can translate "good" into several different words, and I'm rarely sure when to use, say, "bon" and when to use "bel." I may never figure it out, but someone's got to annoy the French and it might as well be me.

So asking me what "a good life" means depends entirely on context. Are we speaking ethically or materially? Is it a matter of something that happens to you or something that you have to work for?

Change the article in the phrase and you also change the connotation: "a good life" can mean something different from "the good life." Une bonne vie, la belle vie.

Fortunately, as a writer, such ambiguity is a benefit, although I haven't delved into it until right now so my thoughts aren't fully formed. But if I were to plan out a story entitled "A Good Life," I might contrast the life of someone dedicating their actions to helping others, and someone living a life of leisure and luxury (which, contrary to popular belief, does not preclude also helping others). In other words, one living to do things for others, and the other living for the pleasure of it. I'd want to show, in such a story, that both individuals are pursuing their own idea of pleasure, though Other People are going to hold the first person in higher regard than the second... which is, of course, selfish on the part of Other People because they're the ones benefiting from it.

Put another way, Person A pursues charity and derives pleasure from helping others, while Person B pursues comfort and derives pleasure from leisure. (You, uh, should read that last phrase in a British accent for best effect.) We say that Person B is selfish, but the only real difference between them is the actions they do to satisfy themselves -- and how those actions are perceived by others.

Honestly, I'd choose a mix of both -- like I said, they are not mutually exclusive, though in our binary-loving society people tend to think in extremes and exclude the middle. I've noted before the false dichotomy in the sentence: "It is better to be poor and happy than rich and unhappy." ("Better," you'll note, is the comparative form of "good.") It is a false dichotomy because a) it's possible to be poor and unhappy; b) it's possible to be rich and happy and c) from the original choices, I'd personally rather be rich and unhappy.

But, if I were forced to pick from one or the other, I'd choose "a good life" as in a life of comfort, luxury, travel, gourmet food, expensive scotch, delicious beer, and all the finer things. That's good enough for me. Those who don't see that this also helps other people along the way might benefit from a good course in economics.