Hedonism

According to Sigmund Freud, the purpose of life is to find happiness and avoid suffering. He claims that civilization is “the achievements and the regulations which distinguish our lives from those of our animal ancestors.” Through his analysis of people, he came to the conclusion that civilization is counter-productive to the ultimate goal of pleasure. We will attempt to determine how Euripides believes civilization relates to individuality through a Freudian analysis of The Bacchae. To do this…

In Voltaire's Candide, two opposite characters are introduced to readers, Pangloss and Martin, the first demonstrating an optimistic perception on life, however the second represents a pessimistic perception on it. Both of these characters represents a diverse point of view of thought, applies his own ideas and beliefs to the world, and tries to persuade Candide of his own angle that he sees life from. This essay will compare and contrast both of the perceptions and how Candide reacts to both of…

Utilitarianism is the theory that the right decision is that which produces the greatest amount of good, everyone considered. The strengths of this theory is that we are not simply considered our own selfish wants, but the good of all people. The struggle we often have with this concept is that utilitarianists are forced to make decisions where there is often a lot of collateral damage. That begs the question as to whether the good created is greater than the loss. The Tuskegee experiments are a…

In Chapter II of Utilitarianism Mill raises a variety of objections to the moral theory of utility or the Greatest Happiness Principle. In Mill’s observation people misinterpret utilitarianism as an oppression to pleasure. In reality, a utility is known as pleasure itself. The principle of utilitarianism holds that actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness. In this principle happiness are the intended pleasure and the absence of pain. Pleasure and the absence of pain in…

Response Paper 1 The ethical theory of utilitarianism argues that an act is only morally right if its consequences result in at least as much pleasure or wellbeing as the consequences of every alternative act. This theory was introduced by Jeremy Bentham and later further developed by John Stuart Mill. This paper will discuss Mill’s thoughts on utilitarianism and how its application can result in new moral dilemmas. John Stuart Mill begins chapter three by pondering what exactly it is that…

When describing the presence of pleasure and pain in a blessed life Epicurus writes that “we are in need of pleasure only when we are in pain because of the absence of pleasure, and when we are not in pain, then we no longer need pleasure” (Epicurus Letter to Menoeceus). This quote written by Epicurus in Letter to Menoeceus describes the ability of pleasure to remove pain, however from this quote alone one could misunderstand the nature of the pleasure Epicurus suggests seeking. The pleasure one…

Utilitarian Consequentialism basically surrounds itself based off the idea that an action can be evaluated in terms of pleasure and pain in causes. With Utilitarian it attempts to weigh out the options, in which they will arrive at a moral decision and the decision will be that will cause the least amount of pain possible but will have the happiest outcome in the end of it all. The utilitarian consequentialist viewpoint on human water is arguable to be valid because to be able to allow human…

Utilitarianism The utilitarianism is a great moral theory that can be applied to solve moral issues such by interrogating a terrorist and violating their human rights. We can take as an example the use of torture such as sleep deprivation in the interrogation to a terrorist or some war prisoner, in utilitarianism that action is being justified because it can help to save a lot of people for a future attack from an enemy, or to help to get in jail more terrorists that are involved in the…

Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is the idea that the goal of society should be to bring about the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. So, actions are judged depending on whether they produce pleasure or pain, and what effect they have on society well-being and happiness. Utilitarianism gained a lot in prominence and popularity due in part to the work of Jeremy Bentham, who was born in 1748 and a student of law published his primary work named Introduction to the principles of…

Sun Signs in Characters from Candor The signs of the Zodiac are known by most people, or at least their own sun sign. While it is quite a complex and imprecise system, astrology can be astonishingly accurate when all the counterparts are put together. The signs can reveal much about one's character. What if you do not know the day of birth for someone? Only speculation can tell. The protagonist of Candor, Oscar Banks, has many traits, but mostly show those of an Aquarius-Pisces cusp. Cusp…