Ethical Egoism, Ethical Altruism, And Eudaimonia - 1660 Words

Ethical Egoism, Ethical Altruism, and Eudaimonia are terms adversely mentioned, and used interchangeably, especially in the philosophical field. From a philosophical angle, egoism can take the descriptive or the normative perspective. While taking the ethical egoism angle, the source highlights that for a particular action, it must adhere to the moral requirements to the extent that there is no depriving of the individual’s self-interests. With regards to ethical altruism, there is the tendency to be inclined to a behavior that has high intentions of ensuring that there is the garnering of benefits to the other person for the purpose of this other person’s welfare (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy n.p.). The chapter 5 (115) observes†¦show more content†¦Another critical aspect worth noting is that it is not necessary that the actions intended for self-sacrifice be termed as altruistic. They can remain as so, even when there is some self-interest driving suc h acts. According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, if a person undertakes an action driven by the altruistic intentions, with no self-interests behind such actions, the actions can be described as being purely altruistic. However, the source stresses the importance of differentiating the purely altruistic actions to the self-sacrificing efforts. The purely altruistic actions involve no gain at a personal level while the self-sacrificing efforts involve losing something for the benefit of another. On the other hand, ethical egoism differentiates from the ethical altruism in that while the latter is concerned with the welfare of others; the concern of the former is for the promotion of the interests of oneself. Moseley (n.p.) notes that ethical egoism is a normative theory that shares in the notion that â€Å"the promotion of one’s good is in accordance with morality† (Moseley n.p.). This particular source notes that there is a robust and weak angle of the promotion of one’s good. The strong angle has it that; â€Å"it is always moral to promote one’s good† (Moseley n.p.). On the other hand, the weakerShow MoreRelatedPhilosophy of Ethics Essay2233 Words   |  9 Pageschanged along with the changes being made within society. The first rational method is Virtue Ethics. The major philosophers during this period were materialists such as Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, and Plutarch. Greek were concerned with finding eudaimonia meaning the good life, but what is the good life? Known as the greatest Western philosopher, Plato developed the Cardinal Virtues: Justice, Courage, Moderation, and Wisdom (The Republic). He believed Justice was the highest good and all otherRead MoreThe Philosophy of Happiness11705 Words   |  47 PagesAristotle, who, in a manner typical of philosophers, before providing an answer insisted on making a distinction between two different questions. His first question was what was meant by the word ‘happiness’—or rather, its ancient Greek equivalent eudaimonia. His second question was where happiness was to be found, that is to say, what is it that makes us truly happy. Reasonably enough he thought that it was futile to try to answer the second question without hav ing given thought to the first. The definition