Introduction
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History of Hedonism
Hedonism
is the philosophy that
pleasure
is the most important pursuit of mankind, and the only thing that is
good
for an individual. Hedonists, therefore, strive to
maximize
their total pleasure (the
net
of any pleasure less any pain or suffering). They believe that pleasure is the
only good
in life, and pain is the
only evil
, and our life's goal should be to
maximize pleasure
and
minimize pain
.
Psychological Hedonism
is the view that humans are
psychologically constructed
in such a way that we
exclusively desire pleasure
.
Ethical Hedonism
, on the other hand, is the view that our fundamental
moral obligation
is to maximize pleasure or happiness. It is the
normative
claim that we
should
always act so as to produce
our own pleasure
.
Hedonism usually pre-supposes an
individualist
stance, and is associated with
Egoism
(the claim that individuals should always seek their
own good
in all things).
Epicureanism
is a more moderate approach (which still seeks to maximize happiness, but which defines happiness more as a state of
tranquillity
than pleasure). A similar but more
altruistic
approach results in
Utilitarianism
, the position that the
moral worth
of any action is determined by its contribution to
overall utility
in maximizing happiness or pleasure as summed among
all people
.
The
Paradox of Hedonism
(also called the
Pleasure Paradox
), points out that pleasure and happiness are
strange phenomena
that do not obey
normal principles
, in that they cannot be acquired directly, only
indirectly
and we often
fail
to attain pleasures if we
deliberately
seek them.
The
term
"hedonism" is derived from the Greek "hedone" meaning simply "pleasure". In
common language
, Hedonism has come to mean devotion to pleasure
as a way of life
, especially to the
pleasures of the senses
, and is synonymous with sensualism, libertinism, debauchery and dissipation.
Perhaps the
earliest example
of Hedonism (and one of the most
extreme
) was the philosophy of the
Cyrenaics
, an early Socratic school founded by
Aristippus of Cyrene
, in the 4th Century
B.C.
(although, arguably,
Democritus
had propounded a
very similar
philosophy even earlier). The Cyrenaics emphasized
one side
only of
Socrates
' teaching that happiness is
one
of the ends of moral action (
Eudaimonism
), while denying that
virtue
has any intrinsic value. They maintained that pleasure was the
supreme good
, especially
physical pleasure
, which Aristippus considered more intense and preferable to mental or intellectual pleasures, and especially
immediate gratification
, which he argued should not be denied for the sake of
long-term
gain.
Epicureanism
is considered by some to be a form of ancient Hedonism. Its founder,
Epicurus
, agreed that pleasure is the greatest good, but he identified pleasure with
tranquillity
rather than bodily gratification, and emphasized the
reduction of desire
over the immediate
acquisition of pleasure
. Thus, for
Epicurus
, the highest pleasure consists of a
simple, moderate life
spent with friends and in
philosophical discussion
.
Epicurus
was also careful not to suggest that we should live a
selfish
life which impedes others from obtaining their own pleasure.
During the Middle Ages,
Christian
philosophers largely
denounced
Hedonism, which they believed was
inconsistent
with the Christian emphasis on avoiding sin, doing God's will, and developing the
Christian virtues
of faith, hope and charity. However,
Renaissance
philosophers such as
Erasmus
and
Sir Thomas More
revived Hedonism to some extent, defending it on the
religious grounds
that pleasure was in fact
compatible
with God's wish for humans to be happy.
Libertinism
is a philosophy related to Hedonism, which found adherents in the 17th, 18th and 19th Centuries, particularly in France and Britain, including the
2nd Earl of Rochester
(1647 - 1680), the
Marquis de Sade
(1740 -1814) and the occultist
Aleister Crowley
(1875 - 1947). Libertinism
ignores
, or even deliberately spurns,
religious norms
,
accepted morals
, and forms of behavior sanctioned by the larger society, and encourages
gratification of any sort
, especially sexual.
The
19th Century
ethical theory of
Utilitarianism
, propounded by the British philosophers
John Stuart Mill
and
Jeremy Bentham
, developed and
refined
Hedonism, concluding that we should perform whichever action is
best for everyone
("the greatest good for the greatest number").
Bentham
believed that the
value
of a pleasure could be
quantitatively
understood, while
Mill
preferred a
qualitative
approach dependent on the mix of higher quality pleasures and lower quality, simple pleasures.
Ayn Rand
(1905 - 1982), one of the biggest modern proponents of
Egoism
, has
rejected
Hedonism as a comprehensive ethical system on the grounds that, although pleasure can be the
purpose
of ethics, it cannot be the
standard
or
guide to action
, as that would result in intellectual and philosophical
abdication
.
Contemporary
Hedonists, as represented by an organization known as
Hedonist International
, strive first and foremost for pleasure, as did their predecessors, but with an additional emphasis on
personal freedom
and
equality
.
Christian Hedonism
is a recent
controversial
Christian doctrine, current in some
evangelical
circles, which holds that humans were created by God with the priority purpose of lavishly
enjoying God
through knowing, worshiping and serving Him.
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