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Morality and Self-Interest

Morality and Self-Interest. Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life Chapter 3. The Ring of Gyges, Plato. Humans do what is just because they lack the power to do wrong. The story of the Ring of Gyges illustrates this point.

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Morality and Self-Interest

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  1. Morality and Self-Interest Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life Chapter 3

  2. The Ring of Gyges, Plato • Humans do what is just because they lack the power to do wrong. • The story of the Ring of Gyges illustrates this point. • Who is happier, the just man with the bad reputation, or the unjust man with the good reputation?

  3. Of the State of Men without Civil Society, Hobbes • Egoism and the state of nature • Why do we form a society? • On the benefits of forming a society, rather than remaining in the state of nature

  4. Of Self-Love, Hume • Hume rejects both ethical and psychological egoism. • Our love of our fellow human beings is not mere self-love. • We should not reduce love, friendship, and compassion to self-love.

  5. Hume • Observation and experience tell us that there are unselfish dispostions and affections. • Human nature, in conclusion, is not egoistic.

  6. The Unselfishness Trap, Browne • The Unselfishness Trap=the belief that I should put other people’s happiness before my own. • If we live for others, the world will not be better. • We shouldn’t do things to appear to be unselfish.

  7. Browne • Not all people are made happy by making others happy. • Everyone is ultimately selfish, because we all do what we think will make us feel good.

  8. Egoism and Moral Skepticism, Rachels • Psychological egoism and ethical egoism • Rachels discusses 2 general arguments for psychological egoism, and why they are flawed. • Selfishness is not the same as self-interest.

  9. Rachels • A false dichotomy exists between actions being done from self-interest or altruistic motives. • Concern for one’s own welfare is compatible with concern for the welfare of others.

  10. Rachels • Rachels also argues against ethical egoism, in part because sympathy is fundamental to human nature.

  11. The Virtue of Selfishness, Rand • Selfishness has wrongly been considered to be a vice. • On altruism, who the beneficiary of an action is determines the morality of that action.

  12. Rand • Altruism permits no concept of justice, so we must redeem the concept of selfishness.

  13. Egoism, Self-Interest, and Altruism, Pojman • Pojman restates Rand’s argument for ethical egoism. • Rand’s argument commits the fallacy of a false dilemma.

  14. Pojman • Happiness comes when we avoid the extremes of ethical egoism and the morality of self-effacement.

  15. Why Not Be a Bad Person? McGinn • The good life of virtue is self-justifying. • McGinn’s shortlist of virtues, i.e. the BIG FOUR: kindness, honesty, justice, and independence

  16. McGinn • The virtuous person is bold and attractive, the vicious person cowardly and unattractive. • McGinn finally offers a list of moral maxims.

  17. Why Act Morally? Singer • Human nature and human happiness • Can psychopaths be truly happy? • Does life have any meaning? • The psychopath’s life focuses inwardly and on short-term pleasures.

  18. Singer • The normal person’s life is better because she lives for outward and far-reaching purposes. • Ethics takes on the point of view of the universe.

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