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Rational egoism

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803:. Although utilitarianism can be provided with a rational basis and reconciled with the morality of common sense, rational egoism appears to be an equally plausible doctrine regarding what we have most reason to do. Thus we must "admit an ultimate and fundamental contradiction in our apparent intuitions of what is Reasonable in conduct; and from this admission it would seem to follow that the apparently intuitive operation of Practical Reason, manifested in these contradictory judgments, is after all illusory". 792:, first published in 1872. A method of ethics is "any rational procedure by which we determine what individual human beings 'ought'—or what it is 'right' for them—to do, or seek to realize by voluntary action". Sidgwick considers three such procedures, namely, rational egoism, dogmatic intuitionism, and 884:
giving him that dime. The issue is whether you must keep buying your life, dime by dime, from any beggar who might choose to approach you. The issue is whether the need of others is the first mortgage on your life and the moral purpose of your existence. The issue is whether man is to be regarded as
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now, even though this is detrimental to one's present interests (which are to spend the money now). But it seems equally reasonable to maximize one's interests now, given that one's reasons are not only relative to him, but to him as he is now (and not his future self, who is argued to be a
916:"different" person). Parfit also argues that since the connections between the present mental state and the mental state of one's future self may decrease, it is not plausible to claim that one should be indifferent between one's present and future self. 796:. Rational egoism is the view that, if rational, "an agent regards quantity of consequent pleasure and pain to himself alone important in choosing between alternatives of action; and seeks always the greatest attainable surplus of pleasure over pain". 859:
Do not confuse altruism with kindness, good will or respect for the rights of others. These are not primaries, but consequences, which, in fact, altruism makes impossible. The irreducible primary of altruism, the basic absolute is
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as a standard of the good. Do not hide behind such superficialities as whether you should or should not give a dime to a beggar. This is not the issue. The issue is whether you
819:. She holds that it is both irrational and immoral to act against one's self-interest. Thus, her view is a conjunction of both rational egoism (in the standard sense) and 665: 844:(1964) explains the concept of rational egoism in depth. According to Rand, a rational man holds his own life as his highest value, rationality as his highest 1307:
Brink, D. 1992, "Sidgwick and the Rationale for Rational Egoism," in Essays on Henry Sidgwick, ed. B. Schultz, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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explicitly is unmentioned in the writings of both philosophers. Rational egoism was further embodied in Chernyshevsky's 1863 novel
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and normative forms. In its strong form, rational egoism holds that to not pursue one's own interest is unequivocally
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philosophy in Russia, it was later popularised in English-speaking countries by Russian-American author
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Sidgwick found it difficult to find any persuasive reason for preferring rational egoism over
186: 138: 93: 1397: 1146: 1088: 974: 935: 864:—which means self-immolation, self-abnegation, self-denial self-destruction—which means the 852: 736: 567: 483: 429: 419: 351: 286: 281: 251: 246: 163: 148: 143: 128: 1467: 953: 637: 478: 366: 346: 331: 326: 221: 58: 1205: 911:(1984). First, from the rational egoist point of view, it is rational to contribute to a 1145:(2). School of Slavonic and Eastern European Studies, University College London: 48–68. 1310: 968: 912: 820: 800: 793: 783: 752: 597: 592: 502: 458: 446: 211: 158: 63: 1461: 693: 376: 306: 301: 276: 108: 103: 39: 926: 902: 828: 602: 587: 544: 539: 271: 216: 196: 168: 83: 1403: 1134: 1012:
Baier (1990), p. 201; Gert (1998), p. 69; Shaver (2002), §3; Moseley (2006), §2.
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Kagan, S., 1986, "The Present-Aim Theory of Rationality," Ethics 96: 746–59.
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Principle that an action is rational if it maximizes one's self-interest
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Two objections to rational egoism are given by the English philosopher
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Unto Others: The Evolution and Psychology of Unselfish Behavior
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A History of Russian Thought: From the Enlightenment to Marxism
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Parfit, D., 1986, Reply to Kagan, Ethics, 96: 843–46, 868–69.
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Ayn Rand, "Faith and Force: Destroyers of the Modern World,"
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McKenzie, Alexander J. (2003). "Evolutionary Game Theory".
956: – Model of humans as rational, self-interested agents 885:
a sacrificial animal. Any man of self-esteem will answer:
747:, having developed in the works of nihilist philosophers 1135:"The Debate around Nihilism in 1860s Russian Literature" 964:
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848:, and his happiness as the final purpose of his life. 704:, though historically has been associated with both 743:) emerged as the dominant social philosophy of the 1073:"The Case against Rational Egoism in Dostoevsky's 1386:Rational Egoism: A Selective and Critical History 1163:: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of September 2024 ( 827:, egoism cannot be properly justified without an 20:. For broader coverage of egoist philosophy, see 1178:Andrzej Walicki; Hilda Andrews-Rusiecka (1979). 1087:(3). University of Pennsylvania Press: 549–567. 950: – Theory or practice prioritizing pleasure 1376:Paul, E. & F. Miller & J. Paul (1997). 857: 1206:"SparkNotes: Notes from Underground: Context" 1066: 1064: 1062: 851:Conversely, Rand was sharply critical of the 659: 8: 1363:. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. 929: – Ancient school of Indian materialism 1184:. Stanford University Press. p. 196. 977: – Use of reason to decide how to act 666: 652: 30: 1396:(Winter Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.). 1343:(Summer Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.). 1304:. Peter Singer (ed.), Blackwell: Oxford. 905:, who discusses the theory at length in 815:also discusses a theory that she called 1394:The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 1351:The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy 1341:The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 1120:The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy 1053:The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 1028:The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 1005: 995: – Standard example in game theory 38: 1324:Morality: Its Nature and Justification 1156: 786:discussed rational egoism in his book 1349:Moseley, Alexander (2006). "Egoism". 688:) is the principle that an action is 7: 1420:Sober, E. & D.S. Wilson (1998). 1353:. J. Fieser & B. Dowden (eds.). 1279:, 1982, New American Library, p. 74. 765:, and was criticised in response by 1448:Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 1439:Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy 938: – School of anarchist thought 1370:, Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1319:. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1288:D. Parfit (1984), parts II and III 1266:Smith (2006); Moseley (2006), §2a. 1118:. In J. Fieser; B. Dowden (eds.). 692:if and only if it maximizes one's 14: 1392:Shaver, Robert (2002). "Egoism". 1300:Baier, Kurt (1990). "Egoism" in 1133:St. John Murphy, Sasha (2016). 1081:Journal of the History of Ideas 1295:References and further reading 983: – Theory of human action 779:development of human society. 696:. As such, it is considered a 1: 1417:. Cambridge University Press. 1408:. London, 1874, 7th ed. 1907. 1389:. Cambridge University Press. 1051:. In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). 1026:, in Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), 1380:. Cambridge University Press 989: – Concept in economics 971: – Concept in economics 853:ethical doctrine of altruism 124:Methodological individualism 1424:. Harvard University Press. 1414:Ayn Rand's Normative Ethics 1114:Moseley, Alexander (2006). 962: – Philosophical terms 868:as a standard of evil, the 811:The author and philosopher 1509: 1326:. Oxford University Press. 1151:10.14324/111.0954-6839.045 1071:Scanlan, James P. (1999). 944: – Ethical philosophy 425:Left-wing market anarchism 15: 942:Enlightened self-interest 841:The Virtue of Selfishness 745:Russian nihilist movement 740: 719:Originally an element of 1277:Philosophy: Who Needs it 960:Instrumental rationality 880:have the right to exist 16:Not to be confused with 1383:Shaver, Robert (1998). 1257:Sidgwick (1907), p. 508 1047:Shaver, Robert (2019). 1022:Shaver, Robert (2019), 823:, because according to 628:Tyranny of the majority 415:Individualist anarchism 26:Egoist (disambiguation) 1483:Rational choice theory 1322:Gert, Bernard (1998). 1248:Sidgwick (1907), p. 95 1153:(inactive 2024-09-12). 1075:Notes from Underground 987:Preference (economics) 894: 825:Objectivist philosophy 772:Notes from Underground 474:Individualist feminism 99:Individual reclamation 24:. For other uses, see 1405:The Methods of Ethics 1302:A Companion to Ethics 1239:Sidgwick (1907), p. 1 789:The Methods of Ethics 749:Nikolay Chernyshevsky 513:Libertarian socialism 1411:Smith, Tara (2006). 1359:Mueller, D. (1989). 782:English philosopher 686:rational selfishness 518:Right-libertarianism 496:Classical liberalism 1368:Reasons and Persons 1316:Morals by Agreement 908:Reasons and Persons 762:What Is to Be Done? 508:Left-libertarianism 34:Part of a series on 1488:Philosophy of life 1453:The Red/Black Game 1366:Parfit, D., 1984, 993:Prisoner's dilemma 767:Fyodor Dostoyevsky 613:Social engineering 563:Anti-individualism 557:Principal concerns 437:Anarcho-capitalism 154:Self-actualization 1191:978-0-8047-1132-6 769:in his 1864 work 735:Rational egoism ( 676: 675: 139:Personal property 94:Individual rights 1500: 1493:Ethical theories 1361:Public Choice II 1289: 1286: 1280: 1273: 1267: 1264: 1258: 1255: 1249: 1246: 1240: 1237: 1231: 1228: 1222: 1221: 1219: 1218: 1202: 1196: 1195: 1175: 1169: 1168: 1162: 1154: 1130: 1124: 1123: 1111: 1105: 1104: 1068: 1057: 1056: 1044: 1038: 1037: 1036: 1035: 1019: 1013: 1010: 975:Practical reason 965: 936:Egoist anarchism 932: 742: 668: 661: 654: 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Index

Egotism
Egoism
Egoist (disambiguation)
Individualism
Autonomy
Civil liberties
Do it yourself
Eremitism
Free love
Freethought
Human rights
Individual
Individual rights
Individual reclamation
Individuation
Laissez-faire
Libertine
Liberty
Methodological individualism
Negative liberty
Open border
Personal property
Positive liberty
Private property
Self-actualization
Self-ownership
Self-sufficiency
Subjectivity
Antiphon
Aristippus

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