Happiness in Life Eternal and Happiness in Life Meghan Edwards College

To the average human, happiness lives as a personal goal. If we may not receive any of our desires in life, may we, at the least, possess happiness in the lives that we lead. St. Augustine, however, would argue the fruitlessness of this pursuit. According to Augustine’s ethical philosophy, as detailed in City of God, perfect happiness can only be achieved in life eternal. He substantiates this argument through the claim that perfect happiness, by definition, cannot coexist with evils and thus earthly life can never incite happiness. Through this reasoning, though, Augustine merely considers virtues as they apply to humanity itself, forgetting that humanity is composed of a diverse group following various philosophies and exercising equally various virtues within their lives, changing the fabric of humanity itself — this distinction having the ability to dissolve Augustine’s argument as a whole.

To present a reasonable objection, one must first fully understand the argument of which Augustine puts forward. His argument is predominately twofold: first, he acknowledges the decay and senselessness that is present while the body is residing on earth and then declares his proof for the irresolvable evil and thus earthly lack of...