Human Happiness and Morality

by Almeder, Robert F.

• ISBN13: 9781573927598
• ISBN10: 1573927597
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-01-01
• Publisher: Prometheus Books

Summary

What makes a right act right? Why should I be moral? What is human happiness and how do I attain it? These questions are the foundations of ethics and they form the backdrop for all discussions of the subject. In "Human Happiness and Morality", noted philosopher Robert Almeder provides lucid introductory explanations of the major ethical theories and traditions, and looks at the answers emerging from the three basic questions. Divided into four parts, the book first details proposed answers to "What makes a right act right?" including a discussion of consequentialist and deontological theories. Rather than taking sides in the debate as most texts do, Almeder admits that "we face daunting difficulties" when trying to decide what makes an act right or wrong. Trying to face these difficulties honestly gives intensity to ethical discussion. The second and third sections of the book ask whether or not one must be moral, and what is the nature of human happiness and how one attains it. Almeder imparts a clear understanding of what is needed for happiness and the place of traditional morality in that pursuit. In closing, the author details simple Stoic rules for happy living and shows how to live a good life despite the existence of unhappiness and failure in others.

Author Biography

Robert Almeder is professor of philosophy at Georgia State University.

Table of Contents

Preface	17	(6)
What Makes a Right Act Right? The Theoretical Alternatives	23	(96)
Introduction: The Major Ethical Traditions	23	(5)
Consequentialist Theories	28	(21)
Ethical Egoism	28	(1)
Psychological Egoism as Evidence	28	(1)
The Irrelevance of Psychological Egoism for Ethical Egoism	29	(1)
The Truth of Psychological Egoism	29	(3)
Butler and Shaftsbury on Ethical Egoism and Altruism	32	(1)
Two Strong Objections to Ethical Egoism	33	(1)
Egoistic Hedonism	34	(1)
Pleasure Is the Only Difference	34	(1)
Is Happiness Pleasure?	35	(1)
Act Utilitarianism	36	(1)
Rule Utilitarianism	36	(1)
The Differences Between Act and Rule Utilitarianism	36	(3)
Objections To Utilitarianism from Revulsion	39	(5)
Mill and the ``Pig Philosophy'' Objection	44	(2)
The Ambiguity Objection	46	(2)
The ``Too Demanding for Humanity'' Objection	48	(1)
Deontological Theories	49	(32)
Ethical Relativism	51	(2)
Relativism and the Argument from Variable Practices	53	(1)
Three Objections from Absolutism	53	(2)
The Relativist's Response	55	(3)
Kantianism	58	(1)
The Good Will and Duty	58	(2)
The Categorical Imperative: The First Formulation	60	(1)
Morality and Rationality	61	(1)
The Categorical Imperative: The Second Formulation	62	(3)
The Objection from Conflict in Duties	65	(2)
The Objection from Justice	67	(1)
A Kantian Reply	68	(1)
The Usual Objections and Beyond	69	(1)
Ethical Intuitionism	70	(1)
Ethical Intuitionism as a Deontological Theory	71	(1)
The Problem with Intuitionism: The Cambridge Platonists	72	(1)
Intuition and Unreasoned Feeling	73	(1)
The Intuitionist's Reply	74	(1)
Intuitionism, Moral Conflict, and Subjectivism	75	(3)
Theologism	78	(1)
The Problems in Theologism	78	(2)
The Theologist's Response	80	(1)
Ethical Nihilism and Ethical Skepticism	81	(5)
The Arguments for Nihilism	82	(1)
The Response to Nihilism and Skepticism: The Case of the Obliging Stranger	83	(3)
Emotivism	86	(4)
Cognitivism and Noncognitivism in Ethics	86	(1)
Noncognitivism and Positivism	86	(2)
Emotivism and Moral Discourse	88	(1)
Objections to Emotivism	88	(2)
Virtue Ethics	90	(17)
The Virtues of Virtue Ethics	90	(3)
Feminist Ethics and Virtue Ethics	93	(2)
Virtue as the Mean	95	(3)
A Critique of Virtue Ethics	98	(1)
The Motivating Argument from Caring	98	(3)
Ambiguity in the Concept of Virtue	101	(3)
Virtuous Robbers and Virtuous Murderers	104	(1)
What's Wrong with Vice?	105	(1)
Conflict Among Virtues and Moral Guidance	106	(1)
Concluding Remarks: An Appraisal and Subjectivism	107	(9)
Recommended Readings	116	(3)
Why Should I be Moral? Four Responses	119	(32)
Introduction: Four Responses to the Question	119	(1)
The Question has a Decisive Answer	120	(8)
Three Proposed Decisive Answers Rejected	121	(7)
The Question Is Meaningless	128	(5)
Rejecting Three Arguments for the Meaninglessness of the Question	129	(4)
The Question has a Persuasive but Nondecisive Answer	133	(3)
The Hobbesian-Nielsen Answer: The Immoral Person Is Generally Unhappy	133	(2)
Rejecting Arguments for the Third Response	135	(1)
The Question Is Meaningful with No Objective Answer	136	(8)
Another Argument for the Meaninglessness of ``Why Should I Be Moral?''	136	(5)
Counterreplies	141	(3)
The Basic Ethical Question Is ``How Shall I Live?''	144	(2)
There Is No Pure Subjectivism	145	(1)
Conclusion: Subjectivism and the Stability of Society	146	(4)
Recommended Readings	150	(1)
What Is Human Happiness?	151	(42)
Introduction: Happiness as the Goal of Human Behavior	151	(3)
Happiness and Pleasure: Cyrenaic and Epicurean Hedonism	154	(3)
Modern Hedonism: Utilitarianism and the Bentham-Mill Debate	157	(2)
An Assessment of the Debate	159	(1)
A General Critique of Hedonism: Vindicating the Hedonism of Epicurus and Mill	160	(2)
The Concept and the Problem of Nonsensory Pleasures	162	(3)
The Feeling of Happiness: An Examination of One Definition of Happiness	165	(3)
Happiness as the Product of a Human Judgment	168	(2)
Another Definition of Happiness	170	(2)
Two Concepts of Happiness: Sartre and Aristotle	172	(5)
Objectivism Defeated	177	(2)
The Pros and Cons of Subjectivism and Objectivism	179	(3)
The Impossibility of an Unadulterated Subjectivism	182	(1)
Conclusion: Making Subjectivism Come Out Right	183	(6)
Recommended Readings	189	(4)
Stoicism Revisited: Prescriptions for Attaining Human Happiness	193	(14)
Introduction: Reviewing Subjectivism, Teaching Happiness, and Rejecting the Platonic View	193	(2)
Happiness and Living in the Future	195	(1)
Excessive Reliance on Persons, Places, and Things	196	(2)
Unhappiness in Other Persons, Places, and Things	198	(2)
Unhappiness in Fear of Failure and Rejection	200	(1)
Beyond Stoicism	201	(3)
Conclusion: Marcus Aurelius	204	(2)
Recommended Readings	206	(1)
Subject Index	207	(4)
Name Index	211