The Hedonist Theory Of Wellbeing

955 Words4 Pages
So in order for me to make an informed decision on which theory of wellbeing I believe to be the best, I first need to know everything I can about all the different approaches. We will also look at the objections to hedonism. I will define hedonism as well as utilitarian, and analyse their different theories of wellbeing. Hedonism is the point of view that states, pleasure is the most important pursuit of mankind, and that it’s the only thing that is good for an individual. Hedonists, therefore, work towards maximising the total amount of pleasure someone can experience. The amount of any pleasure is higher than any pain or suffering. They also believe that pleasure is the only good in life, and pain is the only evil, and our life's goal should…show more content…
I believe that this should be relatively uncontroversial decision that pleasure (pain) are good (bad) for us, hedonist theories are mostly criticized for being too constricted, and not broad enough. So then, what does well-being consist in?, well, according to hedonist ideal, the answer should be, whatever the greatest balance of pleasure over pain is. The most commonly known and influential challenge to hedonism draws upon Robert Nozick's "experience machine" thought experiment. In the experiment you are given a choice of either spending your life in a virtual reality machine or enjoying a constant stream of pleasant experiences. Many people have chosen the virtual reality as they believe that it is a suitable option. One of the main three points about the experience machine is, in the experience machine, you have the need or want to accomplish something however you never physically accomplish these events, but you still mentally get the satisfaction you desire. The second point is that you want to obtain certain traits e.g. bravery etc., however you never will as you are just floating in a machine, being dormant. The third and final point is the experience machine limits you to a man-made reality, so you desires are limited, you may desire to actually live…show more content…
A moral obligation is defined as duty which one owes, and is ought to perform, however he is not legally bound to fulfil this duty, “Actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness” –John Stuart Mill. Utilitarianism is based on the belief that pleasure and happiness are intrinsically valuable, that pain and suffering are intrinsically invaluable, and that anything else has value only in its causing happiness or preventing suffering. if you are in a situation where you can provide help or support for other people, you would need do the action that brings the most positive reactions all round ( even if you are personally losing
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