Terms
Utilitarianism: Actions that make use of self-interest to attain the good of all.
Self-deception - the act or an instance of deceiving oneself or the state of
being deceived by oneself especially concerning one's true nature, feelings,
etc.
Altruism – feelings and behavior that show a desire to help other people
and a lack of selfishness
Egoism - a doctrine that individual self-interest is the actual motive of all
conscious action
Psychological Egoism
The Argument from Self-Satisfaction
"Everyone is an egoist because everyone always tries to do what will bring
him or her satisfaction." - coined by Abraham Lincoln.
Satisfaction is the goal. From this interpretation, it may be inferred that we
all always act in such a way as to maximize our self-interest—self-interest
being interpreted in terms of satisfaction of wants.
For any act A, everyone does A to obtain satisfaction.
We all do the act that we most want to do, and as a consequence, we are
satisfied by the success of carrying out the show.
We always try to do what we most want to do and, as a consequence of
success in carrying out the act, we experience satisfaction.
One thing that philosophers of science and many scientists themselves agree
upon is that if a theory is a genuine scientific theory, even if it cannot be
proven (demonstrated without a doubt to be confirmed), then at least this
must be so: the idea must be able to be falsified. In other words, we must be
able to set up some experiments by which to say, "well, if the theory "A" is
true, then "Y" can't occur." So, we experiment to see if "Y" occurs when "A"
says it cannot happen. And if it occurs, then "A" cannot be true, and we need
to develop a better theory.
There must be some evidence or Argument that could count against it. If an
idea can't be refuted, if nothing could lean against it, then most scientists
will not even bother to entertain it. It seems, in other words, that nothing
could count against it and that it is, therefore, irrefutable. Every action is
always motivated by self-interest -- that is the theory of the psychological
egoist. And for every act that you throw their way, they can always say, "yes,
but since all motivations are simply forms of self-interest, the motive behind
that act is also self-interest." This is circular reasoning or begging the
question and has no place in scientific theorizing. It is, in principle, non-
falsifiable.
.
The Paradox of Hedonism
Another problem with the Argument from self-satisfaction centers on what is
called the paradox of hedonism.
Psychological Egoism suggests that all behaviors are motivated by self-
interest. In other words, it indicates that every action or conduct, or decision
of every person is motivated by self-interest. It also suggests that every
effort must be motivated by self-interest. The doctrine of selfish motivation is
simply a natural law of psychology. Just as it is a natural law of physics that
bodies tend to move toward one another in proportion to their masses and at
velocities inversely proportionate to their distances from one another, it is a
natural law that all motivations are, ultimately, selfish. Because
psychological Egoism states that every act of every person is motivated by
self-interest, it is universal.
Because psychological Egoism states that all motivations are selfish in the
final analysis, it is reductive. It reduces what seems to be a plurality or a
multiplicity of motives to a single kind.
The Argument from Self-Deception
The Argument from self-deception is the final Argument in psychological
Egoism. It is said that self-deception is very deep within us humans, and it
will always be applied in all of our actions unconsciously. This argument
suggests that sometimes we are self-deceived about our motivation, but
whenever we overcome self-deception and really look deep into our
motivational, we find an essential selfishness.
The thesis about psychological Egoism states that sometimes we are self-
deceived about our motivation. Self-deception is thought to be a lasting state
and not temporary. The overall argument states that selfishness or our self-
interest doesn’t always need to be visible and conscious because it is self-
deception that lets us think that our action is done for the others. Humans
are predominantly psychological egoists. However, it doesn't mean that we
humans are fully egoist or that we are entirely selfish. Psychological Egoism
is not Selfishness nor how we are motivated.
Sample Cases: An example of this argument is, when we are trying to help
an elderly cross the road, we think that we may have done this for the other
person’s sake but we are being deceived by our own selves because the
reality is that deep inside, we are just thinking about our own interest. This
also applies to being a good Samaritan or being a volunteer for an event in
the community.
Ethical Egoism
The Argument from strict Psychological Egoism
First argument of ethical egoism follows the first theory of psychological
egoism. This argument has 5 premises so the first one is “We all always seek
to maximize our own self-interest”.
This is just the definition of psychological egoism. The second premise is “If
one cannot do an act, one has no obligation to do that act” this in simple
terms is call “ought implies can” meaning that one cannot be obligated to do
an act if that person has no power to do it at all.
The 3rd premise is “Altruistic acts involve putting other people’s interests
ahead of our own” This one is the very definition of altruism itself.
The 4th premise states that “altruism contradicts psychological egoism and
so is impossible” It means that the premise 1 and the premise 3 doesn’t mix
together at all. So, for the final premise. “Therefore, altruistic acts are never
morally obligatory”
The main point of this argument tries to explain to us that altruistic acts are
never morally obligatory. The argument states that altruism contradicts with
psychological egoism. The argument doesn’t really support the theory about
Ethical egoism because one must provide a clear argument that we are
ought to perform egoistic acts. However, this argument does not show that
we are morally obligated to perform any acts whatsoever. As such, the
argument fails.
Sample Cases:
1. Woman saving a person from a burning office building. It seems that she
risks her life fully to save another person. It is a selfless act, but it is also
motivated by her own self-interest whether she don’t know about this or not.
2. Helping a classmate in his homework. (The principle from the first
example also applies to this one)
3. Helping a coworker finish a project.
Hobbes' Argument from Predominant Psychological Egoism
In Hobbes's argument: Suppose we existed outside of any society, without
laws or agreed-on morality, in a “state of nature.”
And he assumed that, there are no common ways of life, no means of
settling conflicts of interest except violence, no reliable expectations of how
other people will behave. Further, The result of life in the state of nature is
chaotic anarchy where life is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.”
Therefore, he made another statement, that a moral code must be agreed
upon. But, of course, the moral code will not work if only some obey it. To
prevent violations, Hobbes proposes to have a system where non-compliant
citizens would receive a punishment. People must believe that offenses
against the law are not in their overall interest.
The engine that drives Hobbes’s entire theory is psychological egoism:
Selfishness forces us into chaos, and selfishness forces us to solve the
problem through mutually agreed-on moral codes. Human action is
predominantly motivated by self-interest. Enlightened common sense tells us
that we should aim at fulfilling our long-term versus our short-term interests.
Does Hobbes’s argument for ethical egoism succeed?
Is plausible because it is focused on psychological egoism.
Smith's Economic Argument
Smith’s Economic Argument Smith's Economic Argument, According to
Smith, individual self-interest in a competitive marketplace produces a state
of optimal goodness for society at large. Competition, he argues, causes
each individual to produce a better product and sell it at a lower price than
competitors. For example, if I am a car manufacturer and hope to survive
against the competition, I will need to find ways of making my car better and
selling it at a cheaper price in an effort to get more customers.
I gain but so too does the customer. Thus, my self-interest leads to the best
overall situation for society. Smith picturesquely describes this benefit as the
result of an “invisible hand,” which almost magically directs the economy
when we pursue our self- interest. However, Smith’s economic argument is
not an argument for ethical egoism.
But an argument for utilitarianism, which means the actions that make use
of self-interest to attain the good of all. According to the book, the argument
might be a two-tier system, where in Tier 2 it can benefit the other people
and in Tier 1 it can be still egoistic or serve the self-interest.
Rand's Argument for the Virtue of Selfishness
Rand argues that Selfishness is a virtue and Altruism is a vice.
Altruism is suicidal for a reason. Its thinking is how to sacrifice your life for
the benefit of others rather than living it for yourself.
Self-interest – achieving for yourself, without the expense of others
Selfishness – achieving for yourself even at the expense of others.
Society is wrapped up with the idea that Egoism is evil and Altruism good.
• Rand thesis proposes that the "actor should only do what benefits
the actor" and ignore good Argument and common moral
experience
Arguments against Ethical Egoism
The inconsistent outcomes argument
It examples that you cannot give Egoism as advice to others, for it may
result to incompatible
outcomes.
The Publicity Argument
If you choose to be an egoist, you cannot give it to others or publicize for it
may harm/hinder
your goals.
Friendship and the paradox of Ethical Egoism
The friendship and paradox of ethical egoism explain how an egoist pursuing
happiness in relationships such as deep friendship and love can be an altruist
to some extent due to contradictions between ethical egoism.
An egoist believes in the moral view that everyone must do the acts that will
serve his or her own will. However, an egoist that finds happiness in
relationships contradicts the very meaning of ethical egoism. For example, If
the egoist yearns for true friendship or love, they cannot be selfish and find
the best interest since relationships such as love can make people selfless.
Therefore, creating the paradox that the person should abandon egoism to
reach the goal of egoism or the best of their self-interest.
The Argument from Counterintuitive Consequences and The Problem
of Future Generations
These arguments against ethical egoism state that ethical Egoism is morally
wrong since ethical Egoism is the act of a person with their self-interest as a
priority. Thus, it contradicts ethics.
For example, if an egoist can help but does not benefit from the action, the
person would not bother to lend a helping hand since Egoism only
acknowledges acts that would serve their own best self-interests. Thus, it
seems to be incredible or counterintuitive on the principles of morality.
Another example is the preservation of natural resources for future
generations. Ethical Egoism implies that people have no moral obligation to
preserve natural resources since they do not benefit from the actions and do
not lose anything from their descendants' demise or foundering. Thus, it
contradicts the principles of ethics.