IELTS Vocabulary: Happiness (The Happiness Industry)

<p>This lesson focuses on the topic of Happiness as it appears in the IELTS test.</p><p>We&#39;ll go through vocabulary related to the topic, and I walk you through a difficult Academic Passage 3 text about the science of happiness.</p><p><strong>Keywords</strong></p><p><strong>mental health</strong>  – a person’s emotional and psychological wellbeing.</p><p><strong>well-being</strong>  – the state of being healthy, happy, and comfortable.</p><p><strong>wealth</strong>  – a large amount of money or valuable possessions.</p><p><strong>the rat race</strong>  – a busy and stressful way of life where people compete for success, money, or status.</p><p><strong>basic survival needs</strong>   – the essential things people need to live, such as food, water, shelter, and healthcare.</p><p><strong>possessions</strong> –  , the things that a person owns.</p><p><strong>optimistic</strong>   – expecting good things to happen in the future.</p><p><strong>pessimistic</strong>   – expecting bad things to happen or focusing on negative outcomes.</p><p><strong>materialistic</strong>   – believing that owning money and possessions is very important.</p><p><strong>to suffer from depression</strong>  – to experience a serious mental health condition that causes persistent sadness and loss of interest.</p><p><strong>to have a positive mindset</strong>   – to think in a hopeful and confident way, even when facing difficulties.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>What is this text about?</strong></p><p>This book review is about a book called <strong>The Happiness Industry</strong> by <strong>William Davies</strong>.</p><p>The book says that many governments, businesses, and psychologists believe that their <strong>goal </strong>should be to make people happier.</p><p>These ideas came from a philosopher called <strong>Jeremy Bentham, </strong>who said that happiness means having pleasure and avoiding pain. He also believed that happiness could be <strong>measured</strong>.</p><p>Today, some governments and companies try to measure happiness and change people&#39;s behaviour. They use psychology, advertising, and research to encourage people to act in certain ways.</p><p>William Davies thinks this is a problem. He argues that treating happiness like a science can be a way to <strong>control people</strong>. He believes governments should be careful because trying to make people happy can reduce people&#39;s freedom.</p><p><br></p><p>Get the full set of notes with Speaking and Writing models