Egotism Mean To Me

The theory that we should only do the actions that bring about the best consequences is a consequentialist theory. Consequentialism is correct because if the action taken creates the most possible good, then that action must be the right action. Consequentialism leads to the right action because the right action is the

Aristotle emphasizes that this mean can only be found through the use of reason. Reason decides which emotions to put into practice to achieve balance. The golden mean advises against excess or deficiency, but it does not refute emotions. The golden mean directs people on how and to what extent they should allow their reason to govern

The Ego Centric Problem states that the knowledge we have gained over the period of our lives in entrenched so deep that it prevents us from learning new things. Descartes states that “if we can only be certain of the contents of our consciousness, then how are we ever to gain knowledge of the world that lies beyond our minds. This brings up a good point, if we already have knowledge, does that knowledge have any influence on us that would hinder us to learn new things.

Psychological egoism is a theory that suggests that humans are always motivated by self-interest, even in what seem to be acts of altruism. The theory claims that, when people choose to help others, they do so ultimately because of the personal benefits that they themselves stand to gain, directly or indirectly, from doing so. Psychological egoism is a non-normative or descriptive theory in that it only makes claims about how things are and not how they ought to be. The theory is, however, related to several other normative forms of egoism, such as ethical egoism and rational egoism. The following essay seeks to determine the practicality of psychological egoism as a

     The descriptive claim made by Psychological Egoists is that humans, by nature, are motivated only by self-interest. Any act, no matter how altruistic it may seem on the outside is actually only a disguise for a selfish desire such as recognition, avoiding guilt, reward or sense of personal ‘goodness’ or morality. For example, Mother Teresa is just using the poor for her own long-term spiritual gain. Being a universal claim, it could falter with a single counterexample. And being that I believe this claim to be bunk I will tell you why!

Rachels (175) begins his essay by noting the clear historical plurality of moral philosophies. To the question of ethics and morality, philosophers have given a plethora of responses. However, for Rachels, this diversity itself does not mean that a moral philosophy, which would be satisfactory, is impossible. This is because Rachels emphasizes the link between ethics or morality and reason. Rachels writes, "Human beings have evolved as rational beings. Because we are rational, we are able to take some facts as reasons for behaving one way rather than another. Thus, if an action would help to satisfy our desires, needs, and so on-- in short, if it would promote our interests – then we take that as a reason to do it." (176) The entire question of morality is, for Rachels, one of rationality. The only "reason" that the question of morality arises, to frame Rachels argument in another way, is because we have "reason." An animal, therefore, does not ask what the best course of conduct he should take in his existence. Human beings do ask this question and, for Rachels, this shows that the question is rational. But the further key point of the argument is then as follows: If we have, on the one hand, different theories of morality, on the other hand, theories of morality are ultimately rooted in rational thinking. And

After this introduction to psychology I can now also better understand my behavior and understand the things that are affecting my life. There are certain aspects in my life that limit me from making the choices I may prefer to make. I have obligations and responsibilities that I must maintain in order to provide a decent life for my family. There is much at stake for me and I cannot always just do whatever it is that I would like to do. As a child I was raised in a house where honesty was the key. It has been instilled in my life and to this day I know the right thing to do is to be honest. My parents were very good at instilling a since of honor in me. I am still not sure how they did it but I know it affected the decisions that I made and make today. I was always

Psychological egoism is the view that everyone always acts selfishly. It describes human nature as being wholly self-centered and self-motivated. Psychological egoism is different from ethical egoism in their “direction of fit” to the world. Psychological ego-ism is a factual theory. It aims to fit the world. In the world is not how psychological ego-ism says it is because someone acts unselfishly, then something is wrong with psycho-logical egoism. In my opinion this argument is completely wrong and unsound.

To me the intentionality of an act is more important than the outcome; at least in regards to ethical training. For example, if your intentions are good and you generally are trying to do good deeds and help people then this has inherent value superior

Ethics refers to what people consider good or bad and right or wrong. It is a theory dealing with values that relate to human behaviour; with respect to their actions and purpose. The two most important philosophers that deal with ethics are Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill. Kant’s ethical theory is Kantianism or deontological ethics. Mill’s ethical theory is utilitarianism. Both philosophers’ theories have many differences; Kant’s theory deals with conduct, seeking reason for good action in duty. Mill’s theory deals with consequences and maximizing human happiness. However both Kant and Mill’s ethics relate to the important biblical principal of the Golden Rule.

Without a distinct framework, ethical egoism fails as a moral theory to assist moral decision making because it endorses the animalistic nature of humanity, fails to provide a viable solution to a conflict of interest, and is proved to be an evolutionary unstable moral strategy.

The theory of psychological egoism is indeed plausible. The meaning of plausible in the context of this paper refers to the validity or the conceivability of the theory in question, to explain the nature and motivation of human behavior (Hinman, 2007). Human actions are motivated by the satisfaction obtained after completing a task that they are involved in. For example, Mother Teresa was satisfied by her benevolent actions and activities that she spent her life doing. As Hinman (2007) points out, she was likely to reduce in activity if she experienced any dissatisfaction in her endeavors.

Typically little children tend to behave this way but some adults use this type of moral thinking in their daily lives. Using this type of behavior is usually due to situations where the situation may be wrong but the action was provoked by the person 's definition of fair or the right thing to do no matter what. The question that may be asked while thinking in this manner may be, “What must I do to avoid pain, gain pleasure?”(“Kohlberg 's Stages of Moral Development”). In this stage, making a decision that leads to a positive outcome clearly shows increase in the hierarchy of moral development that can be seen in level 3!

Psychological egoism is the belief that a person’s actions are prompted by their own selfishness. If every action in the world was done, only to fulfill one’s own selfish aspirations, then there would be no purely altruistic deeds. Moral egoism is the belief that people should do what is in their best self-interest; however, they have a tendency to carry out actions due to their genuineness. Based on its definition, morality is doing something because it is the “right” thing to do. Psychological egoism creates a threat to morality, because if a person is acting kindly, not because it is right, but because he seeks self-gain, then morality is non-existent.

Growing up in my family taught me that honesty is the best policy. When I would get into trouble as a child I would often try to lie to my mom thinking that would save me from being punished. I soon learned that lying would only get me into more trouble than I was already. Honesty has given me the reputation of