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George Costanza & Philosophy
Tony Minnick
11/10/08
George’s Failed Quest For Happiness:
An Aristotelian Analysis
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In Daniel Barwick’s analysis of George Costanza and his happiness, he evaluates the lack of virtue and reason in George’s life and concludes that there is very little hope for George’s happiness. George’s pathetic personality and the few pathetic, hollow joys in his life make it obvious that he is not happy. Aristotle said that the two rational aspects of the soul are theoretical wisdom and practical wisdom. Unfortunately, George fails at this wisdom, driving himself mad by “decades of hair loss, obesity, sexual dysfunction, and the relentless din of his screaming parents.” George must know that he is not a happy person because he thinks his “life is the complete opposite of everything he wants it to be”. In The Opposite episode, George actually thinks that he can achieve happiness by doing the exact opposite of what his conscience tells him. He shows no use of reason and allows his sad emotions to affect his life, just like Aristotle predicts. Aristotle said that “actions should express correct reason”, but George does not use any reason in his selfish attempts at happiness.
Aristotle says that “man is able to approach the divine because he is of the same nature as the divine.” George prevents his happiness because he cannot even fulfill this given standard. This is because he hates himself and does not use the distinguishing feature of mankind, reason.
Another reason for George’s failure at happiness is his desire for false happiness. He believes that he is a winner only if he can compare himself to losers in the situation. His idea of success and gain is beating others and telling himself that he is better than them. In no way does George actually achieve happiness though.
Aristotle says that the way to become happy is to develop good virtues and be a virtuous person. So a great question is whether George is capable of becoming virtuous. According to Aristotle, the three ways to become virtuous: 1) Avoid the more opposed extreme 2) Avoid the easier extreme 3) Be careful with pleasures. Unfortunately for George, he does not fulfill any of these goals and is therefore nearly hopeless in his quest for happiness. In my opinion, even though George always has the opportunity to become happy (even though he would doubt it), there is little hope that he will develop a virtuous habit that allows for his happiness. He will continue to live in a miserable and pathetic cycle.