Eudaemonism, Hedonism, and Utilitarianism: A Comparative Analysis
Eudaemonism
Happiness is the ultimate natural end. Aristotle insisted that if all human activities have an end, and some ends are subordinate to others, then there must be an ultimate end. Happiness is this ultimate end: a perfect end, sought for itself and not as a means to something else. It is self-sufficient; possessing it, one desires nothing more. Happiness is achieved through the exercise of virtue, the excellent use of human reason. This virtuous activity is a continuous practice (moral practice).
Hedonistic Morality
Hedonists believe that humans seek pleasure and avoid pain. Because some pleasures are qualitatively superior to others, hedonists use their intelligence to calculate the most appropriate means to achieve the maximum possible pleasure. Moral intellect is thus a calculating intellect, weighing pleasures against pains and seeking lasting pleasures even if they are less intense.
Cynicism
Cynics believe that happiness consists in the radical freedom of the individual from all norms and social institutions. Humans are good by nature and wise if they live according to nature, flouting social conventions. Notable Cynics include Diogenes.
Stoicism
Stoics like Marcus Aurelius believed in a cosmic Logos, a rational order governing the fate of the universe. The wise person accepts that everything is in the hands of fate and focuses on achieving inner peace. This wise person masters their emotions and avoids illusions about the future.
Epicureanism
The wise Epicurean organizes their life by calculating which pleasures are most intense and lasting, which have the fewest painful consequences, and distributes them throughout life. Epicureanism is a form of hedonism, but it is more individual-focused, unlike the social focus of modern utilitarianism. Ataraxia, tranquility of the soul, is the ultimate goal.
Utilitarianism
This 18th and 19th-century philosophical doctrine reformulates Epicurus’s identification of good with pleasure in a social sense: to be useful is to facilitate happiness. The goal of morality is to achieve the maximum happiness for the greatest number of living beings. Utilitarianism may require individuals to sacrifice their own happiness for the common good.
- Act Utilitarianism: Values each action by its consequences.
- Rule Utilitarianism: Considers the consequences of following general rules.
Homeric Poems
What is good consists in doing something excellent (Arete), understood as virtue. The good person (Aristos) strives to provide the best service to the community.
Socratic Attitude
Morality is a triangle of attitudes: seeking truth relentlessly, using reflection and dialogue to discover it, and opposing moral relativism. Maieutics, the art of giving birth to truth, is central to this process. Moral concepts evolve from being subjective to being universally applicable. Goodness requires knowledge; one must learn to be good. Wisdom is thus linked to happiness (eudaimonia). This is a form of moral intellectualism: those who do evil do so out of ignorance.
Three Models of Happiness
- Eudaemonism: Happiness is self-realization, achieved through moral goals. Happiness is self-sufficiency.
- Hedonism: Happiness is experiencing pleasure and avoiding pain.
- Aristotle believed that to be happy is to be fully human. Humans have a natural tendency towards happiness (eudaemonism) if they exercise their rational abilities perfectly.
- Epicurus believed pleasure motivates human action. Hedonists believe happiness consists in pleasure, while eudaemonists believe virtue sometimes provides pleasure and sometimes does not.
Jeremy Bentham
Bentham believed pleasure is quantifiable; all pleasures are equal in quality. Different people’s pleasures can be added to reach a maximum total pleasure.
John Stuart Mill
Mill rejected Bentham’s view, arguing that pleasures differ in quality, not just quantity. There are higher pleasures (intellectual and altruistic) and lower pleasures (vulgar, sensory, and material).
Hypothetical Imperatives
Hypothetical imperatives are obligations that apply only if one desires a particular end. The action commanded is a means to achieve that end. They take the form “If you want x, you ought to do y.” These are counsels of prudence, not moral obligations.
Categorical Imperatives
Categorical imperatives are unconditional obligations, taking the universal form “Do x” or “Do not do x.” One should not kill or lie because these actions violate the inherent dignity of persons. These are moral orders. If one avoids killing or lying only to avoid punishment, one diminishes one’s own humanity.
Implications of Autonomy
Autonomy implies human dignity. A human being is unique and possesses inherent worth (dignity), not merely instrumental value. Goodwill is the supreme good. Moral goodness is not based on useful characteristics but on the intention behind the action. The union of moral goodness and happiness is the supreme good, although it is possible for virtuous action to lead to unhappiness.