The Pursuit of Happiness: Virtue, Self-Government, and the Legacy of the Founding Fathers

The expression “pursuit of happiness” became a part of the American lexicon in the Declaration of Independence. Along with life and liberty, it was characterized as a self-evident “inalienable” right. Its etymology was well known to the Founding Fathers from the writings of John Locke to the texts of the early Greek and Roman moral philosophers concerning virtue. In this presentation, Professor Crespino will discuss the qualities of self-mastery deemed essential to a virtuous life and how those qualities influenced the larger enterprise of self-government over time. He will also discuss the struggles of the Founding Fathers in living up to this ideal. In an era characterized by the quest for material success, political polarization, quick fixes, and instant gratification, does the classical understanding of the “pursuit of happiness” still have resonance?