Thomas Hobbes was a well-known philosopher, born in the 16th Century. He toyed with numerous ideas and theories in his lifetime; some supportive of earlier philosophers and others disproving his predecessor’s findings. Psychological egoism emerged from Hobbes’ opinions. In this paper, I will state his view of human beings, and express my opinion of his view. Additionally, I will discuss altruism and how I view the idea of altruism.
Psychological egoism is defined as, “the view that the goal of all motivation is to achieve a benefit for oneself. This doctrine rules out altruism as a possible motivation unless that altruism is conceived by the moral agent as being in his or her own self-interest” (Palmer, 2013, p. 437). Hobbes stated that every man acts in a manner as to bring good to himself (ibid, p. 190).
Even though Hobbes expresses his statements in a pessimistic manner, I believe that his psychological egoism speaks truly of today’s society. I know, based on my personal experience, that the behavior of …show more content…
I recognize professions are held by people that truly care for the people they deal with and the lives they hold in their hands, however countless people will not provide support to others unless they know there is a reward at the end. Call it greed, call it selfishness, or simply call it a sense of entitlement, there does not seem to be an overabundance of people voluntarily going out of their way to improve somebody else’s life out of the pure goodness of their heart. I believe that people strive to do good for others, but mostly for the effect it may have on them to gain something. The example in the textbook described a man as saying it was his moral duty and God’s law to rescue the girl from a burning building; nevertheless he wanted to be on the news and have others believe he was a hero (ibid, p.
Psychological egoism is defined as, “the view that the goal of all motivation is to achieve a benefit for oneself. This doctrine rules out altruism as a possible motivation unless that altruism is conceived by the moral agent as being in his or her own self-interest” (Palmer, 2013, p. 437). Hobbes stated that every man acts in a manner as to bring good to himself (ibid, p. 190).
Even though Hobbes expresses his statements in a pessimistic manner, I believe that his psychological egoism speaks truly of today’s society. I know, based on my personal experience, that the behavior of …show more content…
I recognize professions are held by people that truly care for the people they deal with and the lives they hold in their hands, however countless people will not provide support to others unless they know there is a reward at the end. Call it greed, call it selfishness, or simply call it a sense of entitlement, there does not seem to be an overabundance of people voluntarily going out of their way to improve somebody else’s life out of the pure goodness of their heart. I believe that people strive to do good for others, but mostly for the effect it may have on them to gain something. The example in the textbook described a man as saying it was his moral duty and God’s law to rescue the girl from a burning building; nevertheless he wanted to be on the news and have others believe he was a hero (ibid, p.