The Pleasure Paradox and the pursuit of happiness 190 What food, sex, alcohol and other substances give us is pleasure. Pleasure is the feeling we get during, and for only a short time after, we connect with one or other of these experiences. Food and sex are the big ones. These two are central to the human state and to survival. Without food we as individuals would not survive. Without sex the human race would not survive. Accordingly, these two functions come with the highest amount of pleasure to encourage us to do them as much as possible. And it does not matter if we eat too much, because by the time that this kills us we will typically be past our procreating age – about 40 from an evolutionary point of view. Any condition that kills us after we have finished procreating, especially one that facilitates our fertility early on, will never, by definition, be bred out of the human race. Equally, while too much sex may not be good for one’ s reputation, health or marriage( if it is not with your partner) it can only be good for the survival of the human race. When I came to understand these issues, what really got my attention was the idea that for these reasons pleasure has to be brief and fleeting. If it were not, if it were permanent, then after one good meal we would be happy for life. After one good roll in the hay we would be absolutely set for life and never need to do so again. And the human race would have become extinct long before it could have started to damage the planet! This is the intrinsic nature of pleasure. It must be fleeting to make us pursue it again, and again! It is not the road to happiness. It is the road to frustration, exhaustion and disappointment as we find ourselves achieving a brief state of pleasure, losing it and then going after it again. This is the Pleasure Paradox. People who confuse pursuing pleasure with an enduring state of happiness are guaranteed to remain frustrated and unhappy. Equally, it is hard to imagine happiness that had no episodes of pleasure along the way, as fleeting as they may be. While pleasure does not lead to happiness, pleasures can enrich a happy life – just as seasoning and sauces can improve a meal. But you can’ t build a