Morality is about determining which choices and actions are good or bad, which always leads to the question - what is the good? There are some who consider the good as those choices and actions which bring us pleasure and avoid pain. These hedonists, regardless of their particular "brand" of hedonism, attempt to maximize their pleasure and minimize their pain. Hedonism is based upon the ancient Greek philosophy of Epicurus who believed that the greatest good was to seek tranquility and freedom from fear (what he considered pleasure) and to avoid pain. For him, pleasure was the "first good innate in us" and to reach such a state of pleasure was considered the highest form of happiness. (As an aside, Thomas Jefferson, who spoke about the "pursuit of happiness" as he wrote the Declaration of Independence, considered himself an Epicurean.) But, whereas Epicurus promoted abstinence from sex and overeating, instead focusing on the "simple pleasures" (e.g., obtaining knowledge, friendships, living virtuously), modern hedonism is more about sex, indulgence, and pursuing whatever whim makes you happy. Should your fundamental moral obligation be to maximize your pleasure in pursuit of happiness, or is there more to it?

FTA:

PLAYBOY: As one who champions the cause of enlightened self-interest, how do you feel about dedicating one's life to hedonistic self-gratification?

RAND: I am profoundly opposed to the philosophy of hedonism. Hedonism is the doctrine which holds that the good is whatever gives you pleasure and, therefore, pleasure is the standard of morality. Objectivism holds that the good must be defined by a rational standard of value, that pleasure is not a first cause, but only a consequence, that only the pleasure which proceeds from a rational value judgment can be regarded as moral, that pleasure, as such, is not a guide to action nor a standard of morality. To say that pleasure should be the standard of morality simply means that whichever values you happen to have chosen, consciously or subconsciously, rationally or irrationally, are right and moral. This means that you are to be guided by chance feelings, emotions and whims, not by your mind. My philosophy is the opposite of hedonism. I hold that one cannot achieve happiness by random, arbitrary or subjective means. One can achieve happiness only on the basis of rational values. By rational values, I do not mean anything that a man may arbitrarily or blindly declare to be rational. It is the province of morality, of the science of ethics, to define for men what is a rational standard and what are the rational values to pursue.

Playboy interview: Ayn Rand

DISCUSS!

Original posting by Braincrave Second Life staff on Jan 14, 2011 at http://www.braincrave.com/viewblog.php?id=433