Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man (1871), volume I, chapter III: "Comparison of the Mental Powers of Man and the Lower Animals — continued", p. 39.
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The lower animals, like man, manifestly feel pleasure and pain, happiness and misery. Happiness is never better exhibited than by young animals, such as puppies, kittens, lambs, &c., when playing together, like our own children.

— Charles Darwin on Happiness

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "The lower animals, like man, manifestly feel pleasure and pain, happiness and misery. Happiness is never better exhibited than by young animals, such as puppies, kittens, lambs, &c., when playing together, like our own children." in the context of "Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man (1871), volume I, chapter III: "Comparison of the Mental Powers of Man and the Lower Animals — continued", p. 39." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Happiness" (D) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Charles Darwin

About Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist and biologist, best known for his contributions to the science of evolution. He proposed that evolution could be explained in part through natural and sexual selection. Prompted by awareness that Alfred Russel Wallace was developing similar theories he published his own sooner than he had originally intended. This theory is now an integral component of biological science.