Ayn Rand - Ethical Egoism <\/p>\n
1. Virtue - what the action is to gain and keep value - what one acts to gain & keep. <\/p>\n
2. Only one alternative in the universe - to live or not to live. <\/p>\n
3. We do not have an instinct to preserve ourselves, only a desire. An instinct would be to know <\/p>\n
how to do it. <\/p>\n
4. Everything conducive to survival is good - the reverse is evil. <\/p>\n
5. Man=s life = the standard of morality <\/p>\n
One=s own life is his purpose. <\/p>\n
A being who does not hold his own life as the motive and purpose is acting on the standard of death. <\/p>\n
6. Help others only as you desire based on selfish pleasure in the value of his person and his <\/p>\n
struggle. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
James Rachels - Ethical egoism vs. Psychological egoism <\/p>\n
Ethical egoism endorses selfishness, not foolishness. <\/p>\n
3 arguments in favor of ethical egoism: <\/p>\n
1. We are familiar with our own wants and needs <\/p>\n
2. We are best fit to pursue them <\/p>\n
3. We know desires of others only imperfectly. <\/p>\n
4. To be others= keepers would be >bungled.= <\/p>\n
5. Looking out for others is intrusive <\/p>\n
6. Making others the object of charity is demeaning to them. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
NOTE: all of these are non-egoistic reasons. Paradoxical. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Three Arguments against Ethical Egoism: <\/p>\n
1. Cannot provide solutions to conflicts of interest.. B and K example. <\/p>\n
2. Logically inconsistent. If B and K try to protect themselves, their actions are both wrong and not wrong at the same time. <\/p>\n
It does not work because it depends on the notion that \"one ought not to prevent another from doing his duty.\" If we reject this, it is not inconsistent. <\/p>\n
3. Egoism is an arbitrary theory - we divide people into types and then say that \"I deserve X\" and you don't <\/p>\n
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See the original post here:<\/p>\n
Ayn Rand - Ethical Egoism<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ayn Rand - Ethical Egoism 1. Virtue - what the action is to gain and keep value - what one acts to gain & keep. 2 Continue reading