History UsefulNotes / EthicalHedonism

Moral philosophy takes two basic forms (there are also others, less common, like virtue ethics). One is morality that judges actions based on what consequences they have. This is known as teleology or consequentialism, and the most common form of consequentialism is utilitarianism or ethical hedonism: the belief in the greater good and that the best course of action is that that makes the most number of people well off and happy, or egoism, which sees actions [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality that benefit the self as the most righteous]].

The other basic form is morality that judges actions based on the principles behind the actions. This is known as [[ForGreatJustice Deontology]]. Examples of deontologist morality include principles like one should not [[WIllNotTellALie lie]], steal or [[ThouShaltNotKill kill]], which counters consequentialist morality that in basis holds that it is okay to do these things if there is a greater benefit to be had.

As a trope, ethical hedonism is known as ForHappiness. Darker forms of utilitarianism are expressed by tropes such as TotalitarianUtilitarian and UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans. Such darker utilitarianism can also be a motivation behind a WellIntentionedExtremist, although a WellIntentionedExtremist may just as easily be a [[PrinciplesZealot darker form of deontologist]] or an adherent to some other ethical philosophy. Some light forms of deontology are related to TheGoldenRule (do/don't do unto others what you would/wouldn't like others to do unto you). Darker and more extreme forms of deontology are expressed by tropes such as PrinciplesZealot and KnightTemplar.

No matter how evil or destructive a person is, an ethical hedonist believes that it is a bad thing if that person is unhappy or hurt, as his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as undesirable as anyone else's. An ethical hedonist would decide to harm a person only if it results in a greater amount of good or happiness for more people. An ethical hedonist would harm a NiceGuy for the same reason, though nice people are much less likely to be a victim because they by nature do not intend to hurt people.

Abuse, violence and other violations or harmful crimes are unacceptable in ethical hedonism, not because they are bad in principle as in deontology, but because they result in suffering and sadness. First, the act usually generate more suffering and deprivation of happiness (for the victim) than it creates happiness (for the abuser). Second, if abuse was accepted, then people would be more afraid and thus less happy. To prevent, stop or deter these action an ethical hedonist may find it justified to harm or otherwise deprive of happiness the person responsible, but not because the culprit is guilty, and the ethical hedonist would rather find a solution that does not hurt either party.

An ethical hedonist generally has no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in manner that does not cause harm or distress. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy die happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad in principle but rather because it has a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforeseen bad consequences]]. When it seems clear that a lie will have no such bad consequences, an ethical hedonist may even see telling the truth as the evil action in that situation. This applies to many of the cases people view as "white lies."

An ethical hedonist character that strives for happiness doesn't try to force people to be "[[LotusEaterMachine happy]]" or otherwise violate them for the greater good. Extending ethical hedonism that far pushes it into the realm of the TotalitarianUtilitarian.

However, given enough InsaneTrollLogic, or simply a disconnect from empathy, human dignity and the spirit behind the principle, ANY principle can be twisted into something vile. Ethical hedonism is not immune from this trend, and it can be perverted either by interpreting "Happiness" in a way that the person receiving the "happiness" wouldn't agree with, or taking the principle to some narrow-minded extreme. There are three main such subversions:

Moral philosophy takes two basic forms (there are also others, less common, like virtue ethics). One is morality that judges actions based on what consequences they have. This is known as teleology or consequentialism, and the most common form of consequentialism is utilitarianism or ethical hedonism: the belief in the greater good and that the best course of action is that that makes the most number of people well off and happy.

The other basic form is morality that judges actions based on the principles behind the actions. This is known as [[ForGreatJustice Deontology]]. Some light forms of deontology are related to TheGoldenRule. Darker forms of deontology are expressed by tropes such as PrinciplesZealot.

As a trope, ethical hedonism is known as ForHappiness. Darker forms of utilitarianism are expressed by tropes such as TotalitarianUtilitarian and UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans. Such darker utilitarianism can also be a motivation behind a WellIntentionedExtremist, although a WellIntentionedExtremist may just as easily be a [[PrinciplesZealot darker form of deontologist]] or an adherent to some other ethical philosophy.

Abuse, violence and other violations other harmful crimes are unacceptable in ethical hedonism, not because they are bad in principle as in deontology, but because they result in suffering and sadness. First, the act usually generate more suffering and deprivation of happiness (for the victim) than it creates happiness (for the abuser). Second, if abuse was accepted, then people would be more afraid and thus less happy. Thus, hurting abusers to make them stop is sometimes necessary, but if possible then it's better to redeem them without hurting them - two wrongs don't make one right.

In theory, an ethical hedonist has no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in manner that does not cause harm or distress. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy die happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad in principle but rather because it has a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforeseen bad consequences]]. When it seems clear that a lie will have no such bad consequences, an ethical hedonist may even see telling the truth as the evil action in that situation. This applies to many of the cases people view as "white lies."

Moral philosophy takes two basic forms (there are also others, less common, like virtue ethics). One is morality that judges actions based on what consequences they have. This is known as teleology or consequentialism, and the most common form of consequentialism is utilitarianism or ethical hedonism: the belief that the greatest good is to create as much happiness as possible for as many people as possible.

The other basic form is morality that judges actions based on the principles behind the actions. This is known as [[ForGreatJustice Deontology]]. Some light forms of deontology are related to TheGoldenRule. Darker forms of deontology are expressed by tropes such as PrinciplesZealot.

One could say that Ethical Hedonism tends more toward ChaoticGood while deontology tends more toward LawfulGood, although those are generalizations and in specific cases the opposite can be true (e.g. a deontologist might believe in a ChaoticGood duty to oppose an unjust law, or a utilitarian may hold a LawfulGood belief that a good government should be supported because it keeps everyone happy). Deontology stresses principles and duty to oneself and others, while consequentialism such as utilitarianism stresses keeping people, both oneself and others, as happy as possible. {{UsefulNotes/Epicureanism}} is one philosophy advocating ethical hedonism which [[OlderThanFeudalism started in]] {{ancient Greece}}.

Ethical hedonism is not about getting total happiness for everyone: while such a goal would be great to achieve, it's too unrealistic to aim for. Instead, the goal is to create as much happiness as possible for as many as possible. This may include creating destructive suffering as a necessary evil for the greater good. This doesn't have to lead all the way down to UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans, it can stop at some much earlier point along the SlidingScaleOfUnavoidableVersusUnforgivable.

The thing is, no matter how evil or destructive a person is, an ethical hedonist believes that it is a bad thing if that person is unhappy or hurt, as his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as undesirable as anyone else's. An ethical hedonist would decide to harm a person only if it results in a greater amount of good or happiness for more people. In principle an ethical hedonist would harm a NiceGuy for the same reason, though nice people are much less likely to be hurt because they do not by nature hurt or intend to hurt other people.

Abuse, violence and other violations are unacceptable in ethical hedonism, for two reasons. First, the act usually generate more suffering and deprivation of happiness (for the victim) than it creates happiness (for the abuser). Second, if abuse was accepted, then people would be more afraid and thus less happy. Thus, hurting abusers to make them stop is sometimes necessary, but if possible then it's better to redeem them without hurting them - two wrongs don't make one right.

In theory, a pure ethical hedonist has no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in manner that does not intend to cause harm or distress. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy die happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad in principle but rather because it has a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforeseen bad consequences]]. When it seems clear that a lie will have no such bad consequences, an ethical hedonist may even see telling the truth as the evil action in that situation. This applies to many of the cases people view as "white lies."

The thing is, no matter how evil or destructive a person is, an ethical hedonist believes that it is a bad thing if that person is unhappy or hurt, as his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as undesirable as anyone else's. An ethical hedonist would decide to harm a person only if it results in a greater amount of good or happiness for more people. In principle an ethical hedonist would harm a NiceGuy for the same reason, though nice people is much less likely to be hurt because they do not by nature hurt or intend to hurt other people.

Ethical hedonism is not about getting total happiness for everyone: while such a goal would be great to achieve, it's too unrealistic to aim for. Instead, the goal is to create as much happiness as possible for as many as possible.

This may include creating destructive suffering as a necessary evil for the greater good. This doesn't have to lead all the way down to UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans, it can stop at some much earlier point along the SlidingScaleOfUnavoidableVersusUnforgivable.

The thing is, no matter how evil or destructive a person is, an ethical hedonist believes that it is a bad thing to hurt that person. In itself, his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as undesirable as anyone else's.

In theory, a pure ethical hedonist has no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in a friendly and well-meaning manner. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy die happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad in principle but rather because it has a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforeseen bad consequences]]. When it seems clear that a lie will have no such bad consequences, an ethical hedonist may even see telling the truth as the evil action in that situation. This applies to many of the cases people view as "white lies."

An ethical hedonist character that strives for happiness doesn't try to force people to be "[[LotusEaterMachine happy]]" or otherwise violate them for the greater good. That's the realm of the TotalitarianUtilitarian.

One could say that Ethical Hedonism tends more toward ChaoticGood while deontology tends more toward LawfulGood, although those are generalizations and in specific cases the opposite can be true (e.g. a deontologist might believe in a ChaoticGood duty to oppose an unjust law, or a utilitarian may hold a LawfulGood belief that a good government should be supported because it keeps everyone happy). Deontology stresses principles and duty to oneself and others, while consequentialism such as utilitarianism stresses keeping people, both oneself and others, as happy as possible. {{UsefulNotes/Epicureanism}} is one philosophy advocating ethical hedonism.

One could say that Ethical Hedonism tends more toward ChaoticGood while deontology tends more toward LawfulGood, although those are generalizations and in specific cases the opposite can be true (e.g. a deontologist might believe in a ChaoticGood duty to oppose an unjust law, or a utilitarian may hold a LawfulGood belief that a good government should be supported because it keeps everyone happy). Deontology stresses principles and duty to oneself and others, while consequentialism such as utilitarianism stresses keeping people, both oneself and others, as happy as possible. Epicureanism is one philosophy advocating ethical hedonism.

One could say that Ethical Hedonism tends more toward ChaoticGood while deontology tends more toward LawfulGood, although those are generalizations and in specific cases the opposite can be true (e.g. a deontologist might believe in a ChaoticGood duty to oppose an unjust law, or a utilitarian may hold a LawfulGood belief that a good government should be supported because it keeps everyone happy). Deontology stresses principles and duty to oneself and others, while consequentialism such as utilitarianism stresses keeping people, both oneself and others, as happy as possible.

Moral philosophy takes two basic forms. One is morality that judges actions based on what consequences they have. This is known as teleology or consequentialism, and the most common form of consequentialism is Utilitarianism or Ethical Hedonism: The belief that the greatest good is to create as much happiness as possible for as many people as possible.

As a trope, Ethical Hedonism is known as ForHappiness. Darker forms of utilitarianism are expressed by tropes such as TotalitarianUtilitarian and UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans. Such darker Utilitarianism can also be a motivation behind a WellIntentionedExtremist, although a WellIntentionedExtremist may just as easily be a [[PrinciplesZealot darker form of Deontologist]] or an adherent to some other ethical philosophy.

The other basic form is morality that judges actions based on the principles behind the actions. This is known as [[ForGreatJustice Deontology]]. Some light forms of Deontology are related to TheGoldenRule. Darker forms of deontology are expressed by tropes such as PrinciplesZealot.

One could say that Ethical Hedonism tends more toward ChaoticGood while Deontology tends more toward LawfulGood, although those are generalizations and in specific cases the opposite can be true (e.g. a Deontologist might believe in a ChaoticGood duty to oppose an unjust law, or a Utilitarian may hold a LawfulGood belief that a good government should be supported because it keeps everyone happy). Deontology stresses principles and duty to oneself and others, while consequentialism such as Utilitarianism stresses keeping people, both oneself and others, as happy as possible.

Ethical Hedonism is not about getting total happiness for everyone: While such a goal would be great to achieve, it's too unrealistic to aim for. Instead, the goal is to create as much happiness as possible for as many as possible.

The thing is, no matter how evil or destructive a person is, an Ethical Hedonist believes that it is a bad thing to hurt that person. In itself, his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as undesirable as anyone else's.

Abuse, violence and other violations are unacceptable in Ethical Hedonism, for two reasons. First, the act usually generate more suffering and deprivation of happiness (for the victim) than it creates happiness (for the abuser). Second, if abuse was accepted, then people would be more afraid and thus less happy. Thus, hurting abusers to make them stop is sometimes necessary, but if possible then it's better to redeem them without hurting them - two wrongs don't make one right.

In theory, a pure Ethical Hedonist has no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in a friendly and well-meaning manner. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy Die Happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad in principle but rather because it has a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforseen bad consequences]]. When it seems clear that a lie will have no such bad consequences, an Ethical Hedonist may even see telling the truth as the evil action in that situation. This applies to many of the cases people view as "white lies."

However, given enough InsaneTrollLogic, or simply a disconnect from empathy, human dignity and the spirit behind the principle, ANY principle can be twisted into something vile. Ethical Hedonism is not immune from this trend, and it can be perverted either by interpreting "Happiness" in a way that the person receiving the "happiness" wouldn't agree with, or taking the principle to some narrowminded extreme. There are three main such subversions:

# Negative Utilitarianism: Instead of maximizing happiness, we should only focus on minimizing suffering. However, all living things suffer to some extent, so we should just put them out of their misery. (This assumes that death is not bad at all, and doesn't count as suffering.)

# We should maximize the average happiness. This can be done by killing off everyone who's unhappy. (This is like saying that the best way to end your computer problems is to blow up your computer.)[[note]]While this is technically true, doing so also deprives you of the privileges granted by owning a computer, and can be seen as running away from problems instead of facing them; conversely, killing anyone that's unhappy deprives the rest of the world of any services or happiness they would have imparted in the future, and is basically an admittance that you're incapable of making them happy. And that's without even getting into the moral issues.[[/note]]

Any of these three versions makes for a entertaining StrawmanPolitical TotalitarianUtilitarian.

Given enough InsaneTrollLogic, or simply disconnected from empathy, human dignity and the spirit behind the principle, ANY principle can be twisted into something vile. Either by interpreting "Happiness" in a way that the person receiving the "happiness" wouldn't agree with, or taking the principle to some narrowminded extreme. With Ethical Hedonism, there are three main such subversions:

->''“He’s a hedonist at heart. All those fasts and vigils and stakes and crosses are only a facade. Or only like foam on the sea shore. Out at sea, out in His sea, there is pleasure, and more pleasure. He makes no secret of it; at His right hand are ‘pleasures for evermore.’"''

->-- [[DemonLordsAndArchDevils Screwtape]] describes "[[{{God}} The Enemy]]" - ''TheScrewtapeLetters''

->-- [[OurDemonsAreDifferent Screwtape]] describes "[[{{God}} The Enemy]]" - ''TheScrewtapeLetters''

# We should maximize the average happiness. This can be done by killing off everyone who's unhappy. (this is like saying that the best way to end your computer problems is to blow up your computer)[[note]]While this is technically true, doing so also deprives you of the privileges granted by owning a computer, and can be seen as running away from problems instead of facing them; conversely, killing anyone that's unhappy deprives the rest of the world of any services or happiness they would have imparted in the future, and is basically an admittance that you're incapable of making them happy. And that's without even getting into the moral issues.[[/note]]
# We should maximize the total happiness. Since even starving people are capable of happiness, we should reproduce as much as possible without any sense of sustainable development. (this fails to take into account the long term consequences of unsustainability, which will end up reducing happiness in the long run)
# Negative Utilitarianism: Instead of maximizing happiness, we should only focus on minimizing suffering. However, all living things suffer to some extent, so we should just put them out of their misery. (this assumes that death is not bad at all, and doesn't count as suffering)

As a trope, Ethical Hedonism is known as ForHappiness. Darker forms of utilitarianism are expressed by tropes such as WellIntentionedExtremist, TotalitarianUtilitarian and UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.

The other basic form is morality that judges actions based on the principles behind the actions. This is known as [[ForGreatJustice Deontology]], and the most common form of Deontology is TheGoldenRule. Darker forms of deontology are expressed by tropes such as PrinciplesZealot.

One could say that Ethical Hedonism is ChaoticGood while Deontology is LawfulGood.

# We should maximize the average happiness. This can be done by killing off everyone who's unhappy. (this is like saying that the best way to end your computer problems is to blow up your computer)[[note:While this is technically true, doing so also deprives you of the privileges granted by owning a computer, and can be seen as running away from problems instead of facing them; conversely, killing anyone that's unhappy deprives the rest of the world of any services or happiness they would have imparted in the future, and is basically an admittance that you're incapable of making them happy. And that's without even getting into the moral issues.]]

# We should maximize the average happiness. This can be done by killing off everyone who's unhappy. (this is like saying that the best way to end your computer problems is to blow up your computer)

In theory, a pure Ethical Hedonist has no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in a friendly and well-meaning manner. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy Die Happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad in principle but rather because it has a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforseen bad consequences]].

The thing is, no matter how evil or destructive a person is, a Ethical Hedonist believes that it is a bad thing to hurt that person. In itself, his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as undesirable as anyone else's.

As a trope, Ethical Hedonism is known as ForHappiness. Darker forms of utilitarianism are expressed by tropes such as TotalitarianUtilitarian and UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.

The thing is, no matter how evil/destructive a person is, a Ethical Hedonist believes that is a bad thing to hurt that person. In itself, his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as undesirable as anyone else's.

Moral philosophy takes two basic forms. One is morality that judges actions based on what consequences they have. This is known as teleology or utilitarianism, and the most common form of utilitarianism is Ethical Hedonism: The belief that the greatest good is to create as much happiness as possible for as many people as possible.

Moral philosophy takes two basic forms. One is morality that judge actions based on what consequences they have. This is known as teleology or utilitarianism, and the most common form of utilitarianism is Ethical Hedonism: The belief that the greatest good is to create as much happiness as possible for as many as possible.

As a trope, Ethical Hedonism is known as ForHappiness. Darker forms of utilitarianism is expressed by tropes such as TotalitarianUtilitarian and UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans.

The other basic form is morality that judges actions based on the principles behind the actions. This is known as [[ForGreatJustice Deontology]], and the most common form of Deontology is TheGoldenRule. This rule is a trope in itself, and it also have [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenRule a Useful Notes page]]. Darker forms of deontology is expressed by tropes such as PrinciplesZealot.

The thing is, no matter how evil/destructive a person is, a Ethical Hedonist recognize that is a bad thing to hurt him. In itself, his happiness is just as important as anyone else's, and his suffering just as unpreferable as anyone elses.

Abuse, violence and other violations is unacceptable in Ethical Hedonism, for two reasons. First, the act usually generate more suffering and deprivation if happiness (for the victim) then it creates happiness (for the abuser). Second, if abuse was accepted, then people would be more afraid and thus less happy. Thus, hurting abusers to make them stop is sometimes necessary, but if possible then it's better to redeem them without hurting them - two wrongs doesn't make one right.

In theory, a pure Ethical Hedonist have no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in a friendly and well-meaning manner. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy Die Happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad on principle but rather because it have a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforseen bad consequences]].

Trying one's best For Happiness is a required trait of any character who is an ethical hedonist without being a StrawHypocrite or HollywoodAtheist. However, a character doesn't have to be philosophically inclined to be For Happiness. The desire to make the world a better place through spreading or enabling happiness can come from anything from simple Empathy to the religious worship of a deity that fits the concept.

An ethical hedonist character that strives For Happiness doesn't try to force people to be "[[LotusEaterMachine happy]]" or otherwise violate them for the greater good. That's the realm of the TotalitarianUtilitarian.

Given enough InsaneTrollLogic, or simply disconnected from empathy, human dignity and the spirit behind the principle, ANY principle can be twisted into something vile. Either interpreting "Happiness" in a way that the person receiving the "happiness" wouldn't agree with, or taking the principle to some narrowminded extreme. With Ethical Hedonism, there are three main such subversions:

# We should maximize the average happiness. This can be done with killing off everyone who's unhappy. (this is like saying that the best way to end your computer problems is to blow up your computer)

The other basic form is is morality that judges actions based on the principles behind the actions. This is known as [[ForGreatJustice Deontology]], and the most common form of Deontology is TheGoldenRule. This rule is a trope in itself, and it also have [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenRule a Useful Notes page]]. Darker forms of deontology is expressed by tropes such as PrinciplesZealot.

An ethical hedonist character that strives For Happiness doesn't try to force people to be "[[LotusEaterMachine happy]]" or otherwise violate them for the greater good. That's the realm of the TotalitarianUtilitarian.

In theory, a pure Ethical Hedonist have no problem with lies and deceit as long as it's done in a friendly and well-meaning manner. She would rather let her fallen comrades [[LetThemDieHappy Die Happy]] than [[WillNotTellALie letting her honesty go too far]]. Of course, in most situations ethical hedonism consider lies and deceit to be a bad thing. But that's not because it's bad on principle but rather because it have a tendency to have [[SnowballLie unforseen bad consequences]].

Abuse, violence and other violations is unacceptable in Ethical Hedonism, for two reasons. First, the act usually generate more suffering and deprivation if happiness (for the victim) then it creates happiness (for the abuser). Second, if abuse was accepted, then people would be more afraid and thus less happy. Thus, hurting abusers to make them stop is sometimes necessary, but if possible then it's better to redeem them without hurting them - two wrongs doesn't make one right.

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