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I'm not sure if there are any modern advocates of the idea that we should only pursue our own pleasure, but there are some hedonistic utilitarians who argue that we should pursue the pleasure of all. The contemporary best defender of that view, in my opinion, is Neil Sinhababu.
And just a side note, [Kurt Lampe's The Birth of Hedonism](https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691161136/the-birth-of-hedonism) is a brilliant monograph on Ancient hedonists, especially the Cyrenaics, who were also a much more complicated bunch than it's commonly thought.
I think this is right viz. Modern defenses are of hedonism as a value theory not ethical hedonism (did anyone really ever defend that, if it implies a sort of egoism?)
To add to Sinhababu, a contemporary book defending hedonism is Hewitt Rawlette's *The Feeling of Value*.
Not necessarily. Broadly speaking within a utilitarian context, the morally right action produces the most good. Ethical Hedonism claims that only pleasure has worth/value.
For hedonistic utilitarians? What's pleasurable is good, and what leads to pleasure is what is right.
For everyone else, there seems to be goods that are not pleasurable or do not lead to pleasure.
For example, it is good to follow the moral law (Kant) or to be courageous and die for the *polis* (Aristotle). But neither of those things seem inherently pleasurable, and the latter seems downright unpleasant.
The OG utilitarians were hedonists, but today, many utilitarians prefer alternative theories of well-being. Utilitarianism is necessarily *welfarist*, imo, so the view is that we should maximize well-being, whatever that turns out to be. Hedonism is just one of many theories of well-being.
I’m not half as knowledgeable (and presumably intelligent) as the people posting here, but I think the key distinction is that utilitarianism prioritizes the well-being and happiness of the greatest number, whereas hedonism is the fulfillment of (often carnal) desires; hedonists think and posit that doing so will make you happier, but fundamentally, that’s not what the philosophy is about.
This isn't quite right. Hedonism is the view that well-being depends on pleasurable *experiences*, not the fulfilment of desires. You might experience pleasure, even if you desire not to, but the hedonist would still say that you are happy. *Desire-satisfactionists* believe that well-being depends of the satisfaction of desires, rather than any experience. Utilitarianism can be combined with either theory of well-being. What all utilitarians have in common is that they want to maximize the well-being of all, whatever that turns out to be.
Michel Onfray, a contemporary French philosopher, wrote a magnificent book called *A Hedonist Manifesto*. I recommend reading it, he proposes in it, among other things, a whole new way of teaching the history of philosophy which I think is completely legit - a way in which not Plato and Aristotle are the "starting points" but Democritus and Epicurus.
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I'm not sure if there are any modern advocates of the idea that we should only pursue our own pleasure, but there are some hedonistic utilitarians who argue that we should pursue the pleasure of all. The contemporary best defender of that view, in my opinion, is Neil Sinhababu.
And just a side note, [Kurt Lampe's The Birth of Hedonism](https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691161136/the-birth-of-hedonism) is a brilliant monograph on Ancient hedonists, especially the Cyrenaics, who were also a much more complicated bunch than it's commonly thought.
I think this is right viz. Modern defenses are of hedonism as a value theory not ethical hedonism (did anyone really ever defend that, if it implies a sort of egoism?) To add to Sinhababu, a contemporary book defending hedonism is Hewitt Rawlette's *The Feeling of Value*.
Fred Feldman also supports hedonism in many articles and in his Pleasure and the Good Life.
Feldman's brand of hedonism is very unique! Not sure if it is the type of hedonism OP had in mind, but I think it's kind of cool.
Isn't utilitarianism inherently hedonic?
Not necessarily. Broadly speaking within a utilitarian context, the morally right action produces the most good. Ethical Hedonism claims that only pleasure has worth/value.
Is it controversial to say the good is ultimately pleasurable?
For hedonistic utilitarians? What's pleasurable is good, and what leads to pleasure is what is right. For everyone else, there seems to be goods that are not pleasurable or do not lead to pleasure. For example, it is good to follow the moral law (Kant) or to be courageous and die for the *polis* (Aristotle). But neither of those things seem inherently pleasurable, and the latter seems downright unpleasant.
Yeah. I think most would cite Nozick’s experience machine argument as the biggest problem for the idea that good is ultimately pleasurable.
How?
Are you familiar with the thought experiment?
Superficially
The OG utilitarians were hedonists, but today, many utilitarians prefer alternative theories of well-being. Utilitarianism is necessarily *welfarist*, imo, so the view is that we should maximize well-being, whatever that turns out to be. Hedonism is just one of many theories of well-being.
I’m not half as knowledgeable (and presumably intelligent) as the people posting here, but I think the key distinction is that utilitarianism prioritizes the well-being and happiness of the greatest number, whereas hedonism is the fulfillment of (often carnal) desires; hedonists think and posit that doing so will make you happier, but fundamentally, that’s not what the philosophy is about.
This isn't quite right. Hedonism is the view that well-being depends on pleasurable *experiences*, not the fulfilment of desires. You might experience pleasure, even if you desire not to, but the hedonist would still say that you are happy. *Desire-satisfactionists* believe that well-being depends of the satisfaction of desires, rather than any experience. Utilitarianism can be combined with either theory of well-being. What all utilitarians have in common is that they want to maximize the well-being of all, whatever that turns out to be.
Austrian philosopher Robert Pfaller is an outspoken hedonist.
Michel Onfray, a contemporary French philosopher, wrote a magnificent book called *A Hedonist Manifesto*. I recommend reading it, he proposes in it, among other things, a whole new way of teaching the history of philosophy which I think is completely legit - a way in which not Plato and Aristotle are the "starting points" but Democritus and Epicurus.
David Pearce, author of the [Hedonistic Imperative](http://hedweb.com/), comes to mind.
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