The Pursuit of Happiness in Vietnam

Professor of Anthropology Oscar Salemink is one of two authors of  'The Pursuit of Happiness in Vietnam,' which is a chapter in the newly published book Regimes of Happiness: Comparative and Historical Studies.

The book offers a comparative and historical analysis of how human societies have articulated and enacted distinctive notions of human fulfillment, determining divergent moral, ethical and religious traditions, and incommensurate and conflicting understanding of the meaning of the ‘good life’. The chapter co-written by Oscar Salemink examines the notion of happiness and how it is imagined, experienced, and practiced in Vietnam. For many Vietnamese people, having children is indispensable for finding happiness, as partly brought out in the various connotations of the complex term hạnh phúc. The authors explore how this squares with Vietnam's ranking in the various global happiness indexes, which do not usually measure offspring.

Oscar Salemink & Nguyễn Tuấn Anh, The Pursuit of Happiness in Vietnam, Regimes of Happiness: Comparative and historical Studies, Anthem Press, 2019.