Kelly-Anne Kidston
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The term “hedonism,” from the Greek word ἡδονή (hēdonē) for pleasure, refers to several related theories about what is good for us, how we should behave, and what motivates us to behave in the way that we do 🙈 All hedonistic theories identify pleasure and pain as the only important elements of whatever phenomena they are designed to describe 😎 If hedonistic theories identified pleasure and pain as merely two important elements, instead of the only important elements of what they are describing, then they would not be nearly as unpopular as they all are 🤓 Hedonism is distinctive because it claims pleasure and pain are both the most important elements.
The word ‘hedonism’ comes from the ancient Greek for ‘pleasure’. A psychological or motivational form of hedonism states that we are motivated by pleasure or pain. Evaluative or ethical hedonism asserts that pleasure alone has value or worth, and pain or displeasure only has the opposite or less worth. Jeremy Bentham asserted both psychological and ethical hedonism with the first two sentences of his book An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation: “Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain, and pleasure. It is for them alone to point out what we ought to do, as well as to determine what we shall do”. The debate about hedonism has been a part of human history for many centuries, even before Bentham. This tradition continues after Bentham. Plato and Aristotle are also key players in the debate about hedonism.