Epicurus: The Avoidance Of Pain And Fear

• Epicurus states that end of all human action is the avoidance of pain and fear. Epicurus wrote, “For we recognize pleasure as the first good innate in us, and from pleasure we begin every act of choice and avoidance, and to pleasure we return again, using the feelings as standard by which we judge every good.”
• Epicurus’ view (hedonism) is based on pleasure being the one intrinsically good thing. The opposite is unhappiness or agony, the complete absence of happiness. Many people today use hedonism do describe a life filled with sensual pleasures; however, this is not what Epicurus means when he writes of pleasure. For him a good and pleasant life would likely be filled with philosophy and moderation of physical pleasures. He states that