Egoism

Even if relativism is false and we are not stuck on the "Who is to say?" question, there is still the question of why we should care about right and wrong. Many people think of ethical values as ideals that we can never really be expected to live up to in daily life, or that are actually less important than winning a war, fighting an election campaign, feeding one’s family, etc. The idea that the end justifies the means (that killing civilians, say, might be justified to end a war) is called consequentialism and we will cover it when we look at utilitarianism. Before that we should consider why anyone should do anything other than what he or she wants to do. This brings us to egoism, and it comes in different kinds.

First is psychological egoism: the theory that people are fundamentally selfish or self-interested, so that people always do whatever they most want to do in the circumstances. This is not an ethical theory. It does not tell us what we should do, it merely attempts to describe how people actually behave. So it is a positive (i.e. descriptive) theory, not a normative (action-guiding) one.

BUT is it true? Problems:

1. It cannot be proved. We just do not know exactly why we do the things we do, and we certainly cannot be sure why other people do the things they do. So we cannot know whether it is self-interest that ultimately motivates all human action or something else, or several different things.

2. It seems false. When Mother Teresa spent her life in India working with the poor and the sick, she did not seems to be doing it just to feel good. The same goes for people who throw themselves on grenades in wartime to save their companions. Or if someone sticks a gun to my head and orders me to hand over my wallet, I am not doing what I want to do.

Therefore, psychological egoism seems to be an unreasonable and unjustified assumption unless we define self-interest as whatever motivates all actions.

3. In this case, psychological egoism is just a pointless matter of redefining words. It is merely semantic, not an important philosophical or psychological theory.

The other kind of egoism is ethical egoism: the theory that individuals ought to act only out of self-interest. This is a normative theory. Is it true? What reasons are there to believe it?

1. Psychological reasons: if psychological egoism is true then there seems to be no point in supporting any ethical theory other than ethical egoism.

BUT psychological egoism does NOT seem to be true, and what is the point of any ethical theory (saying what people should do) if everyone is inevitably bound to act selfishly? AND if I believe in egoism, shouldn’t I tell every one else to care about others (especially me), not themselves? Advocating ethical egoism seems self-contradictory.

2. We might all be better off if we each look out for ourselves.

BUT a) this seems obviously not true all the time, e.g. if you break your leg. Individual freedom is a great thing, but everybody needs help from others sometimes.

b) if your ultimate concern is what is best for all of us (and not just yourself) then you are a utilitarian, not an egoist.

3. Ordinary morality shows us that self-respect, initiative, independence, etc. are good things.

BUT ordinary morality condemns selfishness in the sense of caring only about yourself and not your family, your country, other people’s human rights, etc.

So ethical egoism seems just as wrong as psychological egoism. That still does not answer the question of why anyone should try to be ethical or moral. This is actually a very hard question to answer, but here are some possible responses:

1. It is your duty to do the right thing

2. It is better for society as a whole if we each act morally/ethically

3. You will be happier if you have the self-respect and clear conscience that come from being ethical

4. Unethical behavior is often illegal, so you can save yourself a lot of trouble if you just do what is right

5. If you really do not care about right and wrong then you are literally a psychopath. (If that does not bother you, then what more can anyone say to you? They might tell you that, as a matter of fact, psychopathic people tend to be very bored and have trouble keeping friends, so they are also likely to be lonely.)

So, being ethical or moral seems like a good idea. It makes sense to do the right thing. But what is that? The rest of this course is about trying to answer that question.