DESCRIPTION OF INTERACTIVE
Hedonism is a doctrine of philosophy that focuses on pleasure as good. Therefore, pursuing pleasure is considered a meaningful and necessary aim to human existence, and avoiding that which is not pleasurable is purely logical. Aristippus (definition: Aristippus of Cyrene was the founder of the Cyrenaic school of Philosophy. He proposed that the goal of life was to seek pleasure by maintaining control over both one’s prosperity and adversity.) argued that physical pleasures were the ultimate good, while Epicurus (definition: Epicurus was the founder of Epicureanism, the belief that the main goal in life was to seek pleasure and avoid pain.) emphasized pleasures of the mind, proposing that while physical avoidance of pain was important, ataraxia, or freedom from anxiety, was greater. Modern adherents of hedonism would include utilitarians and consumerists.
In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle argued that the route to happiness and the good life is in fulfilling your purpose as a human being. Since humans are rational creatures, this means using your power of reasoning to make the best of what you are given in life. This also means that it is up to you to figure that out. But it also means that if you work at being the best you can be, you will live well and will eventually gain Eudaimonia - a term often translated to mean ‘happiness.’
St Thomas Aquinas based his virtue theory on Aristotle. He agreed with the Greek philosopher that one should try to be virtuous and that happiness would result from striving for human perfection, but Aquinas argued that the only true way to be completely happy - which he called ‘beatitude’ - could only come from a spiritual union with God. To be the best version of you, you need to live the virtuous life - one that leads you towards God. It is only through God that you can be truly happy.
Buddhism rejects the idea that enjoying pleasures, either intellectual or physical, makes for the ‘good’ life.
The basis of the Four Noble Truths is that life is suffering (Dukkha) and that suffering arises from desire. You are unhappy because you desire something, but once you get it, you want more of it, thus creating more desire and more unhappiness. In a modern context, consumerism is an example of desire that leads to a cycle of constant, unfulfilling need. According to Buddhism, to eliminate suffering, you must eliminate desire.
Stoicism sees suffering as a central problem in human life. To overcome this suffering, one must use reason to rise above one’s passions. You need to transcend the here and now, and find your place in the greater scheme of the Universe. To find happiness then, you must overcome yourself - lead a virtuous life based on duty and reason - and accept the world ‘as it is’ rather than how you want it to be. Only then, will you be happy.
Existentialists believe that taking personal responsibility for one’s actions and making decisions based on what you want to do - rather than what you believe others would want you to do - is the path to happiness and living, not just a good, but an authentic life.
If you are true to yourself, you are living well.