Thanks for uploading this video about utilitarianism, one of the more common ethical theories i have heard out there that have generated many moral dilemmas such as the example you brought up with the trolley. I heard of other scenarios like that involving a whole train of people vs saving your dad. I also wonder if the idea of happiness/pleasure being the end goal is contrasted with the idea of having an end goal of fulfillment as its separate philosophy.
I think it's easier to prove that happiness and fulfillment are connected than showing a disconnect, but I could see examples of the latter being true.
My big problem with utilitarianism is the one you brought up at the end. That happiness is and should be the goal of all our actions. I just can't get behind that. I think Campus makes a great argument in his essay The Myth of Sisyphus where he explains that happiness is not a goal but something that accompanies us as we strive towards a goal. Making the argument that even though Sisyphus is doomed to roll his boulder eternally up a hill, we must assume that he is happy to do so Not to mention that a lot of our decisions in life are not motivated by the pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain. We read tragedies and listen to sad music all the time. Yet I don't think anyone would call that immoral
Most of what we do is in order to gain happiness of some kind. I think Camus would agree that we all strive for happiness, personally. He certainly did himself
@baiterfish7801 you kind of disproved your own argument 😅 if happiness is not the end goal then why must we imagine Sisyphus happy? Also the reason why we enjoy sad things are due to Catharsis which is still a form of pleasure seeking lol
At a more basic level, the end goal is survival. Happiness comes into it such that things that generate tend to be things that enhance our ability to survive whereas those that cause pain tend to lessen it. Everything we do, whether we admit it or not, rests on this simple principle.
Please consider seeking God. God is truth. Truth exists. No hypothesis in history has more scientific confirmation than belief in the universal, eternal and singular truth. Truth reigns in your life regardless if you understand it or not. It's up to you to realize this fact and adjust your life accordingly. Seek the truth. Truth is one. Not knowing the truth does not lessen the impact of your folly due to ignorance. Falling still hurts regardless how familiar you are with gravity or whether or not you believe in it. Insisting that you don't believe in reality does not exempt you from being subject of reality. There is nothing better you can do with your life than to seek and love the truth with all of your heart. This is the first of the ten commandments. Thank you for reading and have a nice day.
I don't think saying god is truth is true neither do I think that god had any scientific confirmation and which god do you must seek there are alot of gods and god is a board term so what would even mean by saying god all you just say is seek God but what does that actually mean ? Where do I "seek" god all you just say truth reigns in your life weather you understand it or not why is the truth one ? why not many things many things can be true all at once and does this truth actually needs to be a deity or Supreme being
@@miguelatkinsonI really like this quote : _"There is a single light of science, and to brighten it anywhere is to brighten it everywhere."_ Isaac Asimov Truth is one. The more we understand any minute part of our world, the more we understand the whole. Everything is connected. Universe is intelligible. A single truth has ordered it. The same truth that allows us to freely choose our own path. We can devote our life in pursuit of truth with love or to our own desires. We really have a real say and an actual choice. _For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it._
@@suadmohammed2826 Thank you for your comment. Truth is of ultimate importance. I believe we can find it, or at least support it using reason and logic. Would you be interested in hearing my arguments against Islam?
By this measure, a drug dealer supplies the most pleasure. If I had the ability to plug a brain into a continual stimulus tool that placed the person in a continual loop of never ending pleasure, would it be ethical to do so for someone else?
Absolutely not XD first off there is more to pleasure & happiness than just the release of Chemicals- the actual act of partaking in pleasure seeking is in of itself a form of Pleasure & Happiness... Basically kind of how we like physical money more than virtual money... Also it completely ignores the happiness & pleasure of other's which again is a form of happiness & pleasure for us... Also both the High & the Pleasure Machine are completely unsustainable lol
Utilitarianism puts all people on the same moral level. Vladimir Putin and I are not on the same moral level. I don’t want someone making calculations for me on what is best for the whole as if he counts.
Wether you like it or not we are all living beings deserving of Impartial Care... But just because we are all deserving that doesn't give us the right to put our own happiness & pleasure over others... which is what Vladimir Puttin dose & Utilitarians actively denounces people as such... At it's core Utilitarianism advocates for a Direct Democracy which is a form of governance in which everyone votes on matters directly instead of through an elected representative which is our current form of government... & When everyone is rules then there shall be no rulers at all... You say that you don't want anyone to make calculations for you... But life has happened to you without your consent & decisions are made for you all of the time without your say... Life is going to happen wether you want it to happen or not... Might as well put in your own say :]
@@watermelonprom7197 not wanting others to do calculations for you and having a privilege to witness the life are completely different things. i would also argue on your opinion that decisions are made for us with out our say. it might be that i always had my say but i am really curios in what situations do you think decisions are made for us? all of the things that happened and will happen are determined by our actions. i understand that there are many externalities that can both stop you or propel you to achieve whatever goal you might have in life but it is only you and yourself that determine what happens in your life.
@@xddp4910 before I begin I would like to say that I am not actually a Utilitarian- i was just arguing on the behalf of Utilitarianism because even though I don't agree I still think the original comment fundamentally doesn't understand Utilitarianism... As for why I am not a Utilitarian... that's because Utilitarianism Fundementally believes in a Self... If there is a Self then the Goal of said self is to Maximize Happiness & to Minimize Sadness... The only problem is that Happiness is Impermanent & will always fade which will lead to Sadness... This what the Buddha refers to as "Samsara" or the Cycle of Suffering... Pleasure Seeking will lead to Burn out which will lead to Suffering... But not only that I also don't believe there is a Self... Because we are all Interdependent... All of the Characteristics that make up you & me are not inherently you or me... All of our Genes are made up of Genes of others... All of our Matter is made up of Matter that is not our... The Self is merely a easy way to refer to the bundle of random occurances & experiences that we embody... Not to say that Nothing exists... But rather the Conceptual & Material understanding of Nothing actually dose exist & is what makes every single thing in life possible... This may seem like a random rant but this all ties into your assumption... That all of our actions are our own... But you never decided to be born... You never decided the characteristics that you embodied... You never decided the environment that you inhabit... Your hobbies, your interests, your sexual orientation... Every single action that you take was influenced by a previous action that you had taken... That not to say that you don't have any choice or that no one makes choices but rather... Every single person is making the choices all at once... Including you... We forget that we are fate & that we are life aswell... All is One & One is All... I align myself as a Buddhist & a Daoist... So technically the would politically make me a Commie & an Anachie XD sooo lolll... Privatizatize something is to inherently believe that there is a self take can own it... & Hierarchy inherently Forces those out of there nature... Capital leads to Pleasure Seeking & Governance leads to forcing the Way... Wuwo & Wuwei... Non-Self & Non-action... Emptiness & Spontaneity... Hopes this helps peace-...
As I go along my philosophy journey I find myself agreeing less with the normative ethical schools and more with virtue ethics. Primarily because the normative schools (like Utilitarianism) don’t seem to encourage the person to make ethical choices where they have to exercise their judgments to decide what is ethical.
