Wealth does not necessarily guaranty happiness. To what extent do you agree with this statement? Provide reasons for your answer. Include relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words.

Many people believe that

money

is the key to happiness and that the more

money

you have the happier you become. Other people feel that having a lot of

money

actually causes more problems than it solves. I believe that as long as people have enough

money

for basic necessities

such

as food and a reasonable place to live, a great deal of surplus

money

tends to make life less rather than more content. There are a several reasons for

this

.

First

of all, if you have a great deal of

money

there is no real reason to go out to work or to strive for anything.

Secondly

, wealthy people tend to attract the wrong sort of people. After a while, the rich start to believe that the people around them are only after one thing; having a share in their

money

.

This

makes rich people distrustful even of those good and loyal people who are their genuine friends. Another result of having plenty of

money

is the fear of losing it. Rich people start to build high walls around themselves and invest in hi-tech security systems to keep out the rest of the world. They

also

become snobbish about whom they meet, always frightened that people without

money

are potential thieves or con artists. For all these reasons I feel that having a great deal of

money

actually brings the opposite of happiness. It leads people to lose sight of the real sources of happiness, which often come from simple things like family life and friendship. Wealth prevents people from seeing the true value of things, only recognising what they cost.