Ethical Egoism (PPT)

7/29/2019 Ethical Egoism (PPT)

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Lawrence M. Hinman, Ph.D.Director, The Values InstituteUniversity of San Diego

2/21/2013 (c) Lawrence M. Hinman 1

Look out for #1

and there is no #2Ethical Egoism
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Be My Valentine?

Love, we are repeatedly taught, consists of self-sacrifice. Love based on self-interest, we areadmonished, is cheap and sordid. True love, weare told, is altruistic. But is it?

Genuine love is the exact opposite. It is the mostselfish experience possible, in the true sense ofthe term: it benefits your life in a way thatinvolves no sacrifice of others to yourself nor ofyourself to others.

--Gary HullValentines Day, 1998

Ayn Rand Institute in Marina del Rey


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Ethical Egoism

Selfishness is extolledas a virtue

Ayn Rand,The Virtue ofSelfishness

May appeal topsychological egoism

as a foundation

Often very compelling

for high schoolstudents


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Versions of Ethical Egoism

Personal Ethical Egoism

I am going to act only in my own interest, and

everyone else can do whatever they want.

Individual Ethical Egoism Everyone should act in my own interest.

Universal Ethical Egoism

Each individual should act in his or her own

self interest.


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Arguments for Ethical Egoism

There are at least three principalarguments in support of ethicalegoism:

Altruism is demeaning.

Acting selfishly creates a betterworld.

It doesnt result in such a differentworld after all.


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Altruism Is Demeaning

Friedrich Nietzsche and otherphilosophers argued thataltruism was demeaningbecause it meant that an

individual was saying thatsome other person was moreimportant than thatindividual. Nietzsche sawthis as denigrating oneself,putting oneself down byvaluing oneself less than theother. This, the heart ofaltruism, is demeaning inNietzsches eyes.


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Acting Selfishly Creates a Better

World

Ethical egoists sometimes maintain that ifeach person took care of himself/herself,the overall effect would be to make the

world a better place for everyone. Epistemological: Each person is best suited to

know his or her own best interests.

Moral: Helping others makes them dependent,which ultimately harms them.

Reply: this justification ultimately appeals toutilitarian principles, not the principles ofethical egoism.


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Ethical egoism doesnt result in such a

different world after all.

This argument presupposes the people in factalready act selfishly (i.e, psychologicalegoism) and are just pretending to bealtruistic.

If psychological egoism is true, then weshould admit its truth and get rid of ourhypocrisy.

Reply: it may not make a big difference in aworld of independent adults, but in a worldwith children and people at risk or in need,they would be put in further jeopardy.


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Criticisms of Ethical Egoism

Cannot be consistently universalized

But see Kalin: This works in sports.

Presupposes a world of strangersindifferent to one another.

Difficult to imagine love or even

friendship from the altruistsstandpoint.

Seems to be morally insensitive


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Universalizing Ethical Egoism

Can the ethical egoist consistently willthat everyone else follow the tenets ofethical egoism? It seems to be in ones self-interest to be

selfish oneself and yet get everyone else to act

altruistically (especially if they act for yourbenefit). This leads to individual ethicalegoism.

Some philosophers such as Jesse Kalin

have argued that in sports we consistentlyuniversalize ethical egoism: we intend towin, but we want our opponents to try ashard as they can!


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Ethical Egoism:

a philosophy for a world of strangers

Some philosophers have argued that

ethical egoism is, at best,

appropriate to living in a world ofstrangers that you do not care about.


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Ethical Egoism and Friendship

Can ethical egoists be good friends?

If friendship involves (among other

things) being concerned about otherpeople for their own sake, then thisseems something beyond the reach ofthe egoist.

Ethical egoists can help their friends ifthey believe there is a long-term payofffor doing so.


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Ethical Egoism and

Moral Sensitivity

Can the ethical egoist be sensitive tothe suffering of others?

Such sensitivity seems to presupposecaring about other people for their ownsake.

Moral sensitivity presupposes that the

suffering of others exerts a moral pullon the individualsomething that theethical egoist does not recognize.


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The Truths in Ethical Egoism

Sometimes self-interestmasquerades as altruism

Ethics should not deny theimportance of self-interest

Self-love is a virtue, but it is not the

only virtue Ethical egoism mistakes apart of the picture for the wholepicture


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AristotleTocquevilles

Self-interest rightly understood

Egoism, Altruism, andthe Ideal World

Ideally, we seek a society in

which self-interest and regard

for others convergethe green

zone.

Egoism at the expense of

others and altruism at the

expense of self-interest both

create worlds in which

goodness and self-regard are

mutually exclusivethe yellow

zone. No one want the red zone,

which is against both self-

interest and regard for others.

High

Altruism

Low

Egoism

Low

Altruism

High

Egoism

Self-sacrificingaltruism

Self-interest

at the expense

of others

Self-interest

and regardfor othersconverge

Not beneficial

either to self

or others

Kant

Hobbess

State of Nature,

Nietzsche?

Drug addiction

Alcoholism, etc.

Ethical Egoism (PPT)

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