Semiotics of Happiness

Ashley Frawley, Lecturer in Sociology and Social Policy, Swansea University, Wales

• PrefaceAcknowledgements1. The ‘Problem’ of Happiness2. A Hospitable Context for Claims-Making 3. The Rhetoric of Social Problems4. Claims-Makers and the News5. Happiness: From Prehistory to Paradox6. The Problem of Lies Within7. Owning Happiness8. Happiness Expertise9. The Rhetoric of Happiness 10. The Inventory of a ProblemBibliographyIndex

Of interest to linguists and sociologists alike, this excellent study examines when, how, and why the discourse of happiness came to find a place in British public policy. Documenting the growth of the happiness industry in Britain over the last 25 years, Frawley (sociology and social policy, Swansea Univ., Wales) details the expansion of media and political commentary on collective well-being … This book is valuable both as a history of the rise of happiness discourse and research and as an exemplary discussion of the processes involved in the social construction of a problem by key players with financial and social interests at stake. Going beyond the simple documentation of the context, players, and processes involved in the rise of a common cultural symbol, Frawley argues that this problematization of an evocative emotion is directly related to people's loss of belief in progress, collective narratives, and structural solutions. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals.