Three reasons we love a happy ending

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Life is scary. We don’t know what’s going to happen from one day to the next. We assume we’ll “end up” happy and healthy but no one ever knows. The decisions we make are fraught with “what ifs” and there is no way to be certain that the decision we make is the right one.

Happy endings remove that doubt. You know that Jack and Jim are going to stay together forever, that the sex will always be hot, that they’ll always fall asleep happy within each others’ arms. There’s a strong allure to that kind of certainty, even if it’s for fictional characters.

Reason #2 – the fantasy

If we’re lucky, we meet someone who we get along with, who we love and adore, who accepts (most of) us for what we are and you can, on most days, count on them from day to day. But there are relationships that don’t make it. Things end, whether through death, divorce or desertion (to steal a line from The Witches of Eastwick).

Just as with the certainty of the happy ending, there’s the fantasy. Every day that the happy couple wakes up together will be bright. Their breath won’t smell, they won’t have stolen the sheets yet again, they’ll do the dishes, there will be no arguments when they go do the shopping and everything, after their initial trials, will be perfect. Ahhh fantasy.

Reason #3 – the emotional pay-off

And finally, there’s the buzz we get from reading about their happy ending, from finishing a story that has kept us engaged and connected us with the characters. It’s the sigh at the end as we close the book, the surge of endorphins at the pleasure of two people finding true love, and the momentary escape from our own, often slightly dull lives. That’s what keeps us coming back for more happy endings. And if you’re lucky there will be tears and they’ll be tears of joy.

Why do you love a happy ending?