名利雙收＝幸福人生？

Many people would agree that many film stars and music celebrities lead unhappy lives even though they may earn a great deal of money and live in luxurious mansions. News items regularly report that famous people have depression, drugs problems or even commit suicide. Is this the price they pay for being famous? I will now look at these issues in more detail.

In general, many believe that financial stability brings happy life because of less worries about basic life needs.This is especially true with wealthy people, including billionaires, famous sports players, Internet celebrities, film stars and music celebrities who could not only pursue but afford luxurious lives. Dressing elegantly, living in an expensive mansion and fine dining is the definition of success nowadays. Furthermore, celebrities in entertainment business particularly enjoy this spotlight, cheers and applause from fans, and obtain mass audience’s attention. Traveling around the world seems to be a habitual routine because of tour concerts or films publicity. To sum up, it looks like living in a paradise for general public who ultimately could not have till death. Although some people argue that film stars and music celebrities must take more social responsibilities to be role models for fans, it is totally worthy of paying the price to become the worship icon.

I feel the question is not ethical whether a big fortune defines living a happy or unhappy life. Happiness comes from a range of positive emotions including joy, pride, contentment and gratitude. It seems to be that mental stability plays a more important role than money. Yet, according to news articles, many celebrities in most countries of the world have suffered from depression and anxiety their whole life. Some of them even commit suicide or suddenly die. It is unrealistic to think that people were born to know how to cope with sudden fame, big fortune and huge applause. I believe it requires extremely strong inner strength. If soul and mind are not mature enough, it is very easily to fall into pieces or get in trouble. This is especially true if those celebrities start their entertainment business since their childhood. Take ex-Disney stars for example, Britney Spears, Shia LaBeouf, Lindsay Lohan, and Justin Bieber, they all got into trouble with the law for different reasons. Their agents consider them as products not human beings. They had to work 24 hours a day in order to maintain the status of being famous in such an excessively competitive and cruel environment where one day being popular and becoming nobody the next day. In my opinion, earning a great deal of money does not necessarily bring happy lives.

Recently, cyber bullying becomes a serious problem, especially for those celebrities who are easily attacked by their antagonists. In the old days, celebrities only need to pay attention to paparazzi who pursue them to take candid pictures everywhere. With the development of smart phones and social media apps, they even have to take care of their social pages for haters, violent languages, threats, and insulting words. I think that all men are created equal. Every person has their right to life including celebrities as well. This should not be a price to pay for sacrificing privacy, and revealing personal life, such as personal dressing style, romances, and marriage. Moreover, they also have to take precautions against crazy fans, stalkers and overly obsessed fans. For these reasons, it is tough to maintain a happy image but in reality, to be wary about every little detail happening in their life.

In conclusion, nobody would suggest that only general public have human rights, but film stars and music celebrities don’t, just because they need to pay a price to be famous. Earning a great deal of money absolutely cannot bring happiness, therefore many celebrities lead unhappy lives due to mental problems, suffering from stress and being exploited.