Ethical egoism can be a well-debated topic about the true intention of an individual when he or she makes an ethical decision. Max Stirner brings up a very intriguing perspective in writing, The Ego and its Own, regarding ethical egoism. After reading his writing some questions are posed. For example, are human beings at the bottom? Following Wiggins and Putnam, can we rise above our egoism and truly be altruistic? And finally, if we are something, do we have the capacity to rise to a level that we can criticize and transcend our nature? These questions try to establish whether or not we are simple humans, bound to our intrinsic nature, or far more intellectually advanced than we allow ourselves to be. Before anything can be discussed about Stirner, we must first break down and understand what his beliefs were. Stirner is an egoist which simply means that he believes that a persons self interest is the fundamental cause of every action that they make; that includes when a person seems to be doing what one might call an “altruistic action.” An example of that would be if an indivi...
Ordinary People by Judith Guest is the story of a dysfunctional family who relate to one another through a series of extensive defense mechanisms, i.e. an unconscious process whereby reality is distorted to reduce or prevent anxiety. The book opens with seventeen year old Conrad, son of upper middle-class Beth and Calvin Jarrett, home after eight months in a psychiatric hospital, there because he had attempted suicide by slashing his wrists. His mother is a meticulously orderly person who, Jared, through projection, feels despises him. She does all the right things; attending to Jared's physical needs, keeping a spotless home, plays golf and bridge with other women in her social circle, but, in her own words "is an emotional cripple". Jared's father, raised in an orphanage, seems anxious to please everyone, a commonplace reaction of individuals who, as children, experienced parental indifference or inconsistency. Though a successful tax attorney, he is jumpy around Conrad, and, according to his wife, drinks too many martinis. Conrad seems consumed with despair. A return to normalcy, school and home-life, appear to be more than Conrad can handle. Chalk-faced, hair-hacked Conrad seems bent on perpetuating the family myth that all is well in the world. His family, after all, "are people of good taste. They do not discuss a problem in the face of the problem. And, besides, there is no problem." Yet, there is not one problem in this family but two - Conrad's suicide and the death by drowning of Conrad's older brother, Buck. Conrad eventually contacts a psychiatrist, Dr. Berger, because he feels the "air is full of flying glass" and wants to feel in control. Their initial ses...
This article, Life as a Maid’s Daughter by Mary Romero, takes the reader through the life a girl named Teresa. She lived a unique life, because she was able to see the differences ways in which different races and social classes of people live in America. Teresa and her mother Carmen are lower class Mexican-Americans, and the people that Carmen is a maid for are upper-middle class white Americans. Throughout her life Teresa learns about different aspects of herself (i.e. race, social class, gender, and family) through interactions with her biological family and the families of the employers.
The human ego feeds off of self-interest, constantly wanting praise and validation. Morals, existent in all humans are a prime target for the ego. Moral superiority satisfies the ego. Joan Didion criticizes the human tendency to disguise their sanctimonious actions as moral imperatives in her essay, “On Morality”. Didion expresses distaste for the ego, describing it as a “monstrous
The view of an Ethical Egoist, henceforth to be referred as the egoist, is quite simple in a way. The way to determine WWTED (What would the egoist do?), can be easily done if one refers back to the principles of an egoist. The view of an egoist depends on the following: 1. We ought always to do what is in our long term best interest, 2. The right act, or duty, is the act that maximizes our long term intrinsic good, and 3. Our duty is to do that which benefits us the most in the long term. In other words, an egoist’s actions and decisions depend on whether the act will benefit himself in the long run.
An egocentric attitude can be seen in Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment. Dostoyevsky's young Raskolnikov is staggeringly arrogant. Raskolnikov commits a murder and a failed robbery in the story. His journey in overcoming his ego can be seen through his initial crime, denial of failure, and acceptance of mistakes.
Ethical egoism is a normative ethical position that focuses morally right action that promotes the individual own self interest. It states that actions whose consequences will benefit the doer can be considered as ethical. It differs from psychological egoism in that because ethical egoism says we ought to be selfish while psychological states we should be selfish (Frankena, 1973. 18). The theory in itself says we are hard-wired to be selfish and focus on what type of actions promote use and is self serving. The moral appraisal of things assumes our curiosity, necessitates and even contentment of others should factor in a stability of what we perceive morally and what is in our self-interest. What is morally right and
If one wishes to be a psychological egoist, then one needs to explain why people do certain actions that appear to be genuine acts of altruism.
• Once more, the ordinary science’ proves itself as the master of classification, inventing and defining the various categories of Egoism. Per example, psychological egoism, which defines doctrine that an individual is always motivated by self-interest, then rational egoism which unquestionably advocates acting in self-interest. Ethical egoism as diametrically opposite of ethical altruism which obliges a moral agent to assist the other first, even if sacrifices own interest. Also, ethical egoism differs from both rational and psychological egoism in ‘defending’ doctrine which considers all actions with contributive beneficial effects for an acting individual
Rosenstand, Nina. “Individual Ethical Egoism.” The Moral of the Story: An Introduction to Ethics, 6th Edition. McGraw-Hill Higher Education/CourseSmart, 2008. 183. Web source.
Altruism is the belief in selfless concern for the well-being of others, while egoism is the theory that one’s self interest is the motivation and the goal of one’s own action. Although the two support opposing ideas, one can always be found with the other. For example, let’s say that John saved Jane from a fire, which normally would be considered altruism because John sacrificed his own life for hers. It is possible that John had egoistic motivations because he wanted to feel like a hero, or avoid the guilt of not saving Jane. In this way, both altruism and egoism saved Jane’s life as well as protected John’s interests. The idea of both forces working together to form a balance is brought into focus in Jonathan Haidt’s book, The Happiness Hypothesis. Ayn Rand states that she is finished with caring about others because it only brings misery and instead will only care for herself. Haidt would believe that she is misled, and while focusing on one’s self is great, people need others to truly find happiness. In his book, Haidt highlights the importance of others through concepts such as the divided mind and the Attachment theory. He further expands on this work with
Ethical egoism is the normative view that each individual should seek out their own self-interest (Robbins). One ought to act and do what is in one’s own maximum interest, benefit, or advantage; and, the action must be moralistic for it to produce happiness. According to this theory morality is based on everyone promoting their self-interest or selfish motives. In the article “Ethical Egoism” by Jan Narveson. Narveson quotes Bishop Joseph Butler’s theory of rational behavior as “the rational agent acts so as to maximize the realization of one’s interest.” Meaning that one will only act if they are carrying out an action with the intention to achieve their interest to its full extent.
In “Altruism and Selfishness”, Roger Scruton simply defines: “A selfish act is one directed at the self” (39). While the selfish acts committed throughout Wuthering Heights are in themselves fascinating, it is the hows and whys behind these characters’ mercenary qualities that carry the most importance and deserve the most scrutiny.
Psychological egoism, a descriptive claim about human nature, states that humans by nature are motivated only by self-interest. To act in one's self-interest is to act mainly for one's own good and loving what is one's own (i.e. ego, body, family, house, belongings in general). It means to give one's own interests higher priority then others'. "It (psychological egoism) claims that we cannot do other than act from self-interest motivation, so that altruism-the theory that we can and should sometimes act in favor of others' interests-is simply invalid because it's impossible" (Pojman 85). According to psychological egoists, any act no matter how altruistic it might seem, is actually motivated by some selfish desire of the agent (i.e., desire for reward, avoidance of guilt, personal happiness).
Moreover, Rodger always exploits other people for his selfish gains which is a distinguishing narcissistic quality. As for exploiting, author W. Keith Campbell in his article, “The Narcissistic Self: Background, an Extended Agency Model, and Ongoing Controversies” explains that, “Likewise, narcissists’ low levels of guilt and social anxiety (Gramzow & Tangney, 1992), and their willingness to exploit others, make them more suited to self-regulation that benefits the self at the expense of others” (5). As a result of this, Rodger, in pursuit of money and women, but never try to get them through his own effort so he uses others to get what he wants. For example, Rodger regardless of his mother’s thought, constantly asks his mother to marry a wealthy
Most people deem that having a strong ego is a bad thing. However, I feel that my ego is the greatest asset in my personality as an optimist. There is a combination of three characteristics that make up my optimism. They are my strong determination and tenacious will power, good strong work ethic, and my positive morals as a person. The mixture of these characteristics makes my strong ego, which in turn makes me an optimistic person.