Apie laimės ideologiją šių dienų kontekste, arba P. Brucknerio knygos „amžinoji euforija: esė apie prievolę būti laimingam" aptarimas
On the ideology of happiness in contemporary contexts, or a commentary on P. Bruckner's l'euphorie perpėtuelle: essai sur le devoir de bonheur

Summary/Abstract: In this article the author attempts to reflect on the origin of the concept „ought to be happy" and the ways in which the concept is revealed in social, political and philosophical contexts. The concept of happiness is discussed as part and parcel of the relationship between the individual and society. The article also asks what ideals of happiness shape contemporary social and cultural systems of consumption and the degree to which they meet the needs of the individual. The emphasis is on power mechanisms which reinforce the "ought" aspect of happiness not via panopticum (M. Foucault), but via sinopticum (Z. Bauman, J. Baudrillard), which is less direct and more sophisticated. Furthermore, the article calls attention to the issues of contemporary democracy, which is said to free the individual and grant him the possibility for self-realization, whereas in actual social reality, the individual find himself entangled in various social, political and economic networks of power this type of context shapes the contemporary ideology of happiness. In our secular reality there are no unequivocal ideals and no purposeful directions that have clearly defined ends and aims. We thus end up being in a liquid condition (Z. Bauman). Finally, the author draws a parallel between consumer society and the artistic „road" (J. Ker-ouac's On the Road), thus highlighting the idea of the existence of two different modes of being "on the road": the road that leads to the pursuit and consumption happiness and the road that frees contemporary man from social restraints and norms.

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