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TheConjugalVisit t1_ivtteir wrote

I'm not sure what to think about hedonism. If we were to all be hedonists, the world would be selfish and unconstructive. Biologically it makes perfect sense to chase the dragon of happiness, but I think we are built for more. That more, is others. Utilitarianism makes much more sense to my small mind than hedonism.

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twiggsmcgee666 t1_ivujf8v wrote

Did Hedonism grow out of the Neitzchean ideal of god being dead and us necessarily having to fill that lack of purpose or sense of direction with distraction to minimize the pains of being alive?

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SupraDestroy t1_ivuxv3t wrote

The pursuit of pleasure is totally opposite to his philosophy. You should struggle and remain eternally unsatisfied. He sees pleasure as a means to an end, not the end itself.

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TheConjugalVisit t1_ivzqv51 wrote

How can this be without contradiction? Pleasure is selfishness. I think pleasure a dangerous game to play.

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twiggsmcgee666 t1_ivuk5ys wrote

Though, I think Neitzche wanted the lack of god to be replaced with humanity striving to build themselves into the ideal species. I'm sure eugenics was born in that thought space. Not what I think he was going for, but his sister was a real piece of work and decided the Nazis would benefit immensely from a cruelly twisted and completely misunderstood philosophical thought process. If she hadn't misinterpreted his thoughts regarding the Ubermensch deliberately, who knows what could have been different.

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Yurion13 t1_iwdxb4f wrote

Buddhism is against hedonism as Budda recognized humans can become addicted to chasing insatiable pleasure that ultimately does not bring happiness.

Neuroscience explains that use of drugs like cocaine can stimulate the release of dopamine to bring euphoria, but once our dopamine is depleted through the abuse of drugs or any activity that brings intense pleasure, the pleasure a person gets become less and less, fueling more addiction, and in some cases depression through dopamine depletion.

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ZeroFries t1_iwh8s96 wrote

Buddhism isn't against hedonism, they're against simple solutions that don't work permanently. They're against simple, naive hedonism, but not hedonism in its broadest understanding: freedom from suffering.

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ZeroFries t1_iwh8k6e wrote

David Pearce is a negative utilitarian. He's not advocating for personal suffering abolishment alone but total and universal abolishment for all sentient beings.

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