Joseph Koonrajaksebonde

Phil 1000 HTC 123

Topic #3
 Hedonism, Cynicism and Stoicism: Happinesss Endeavor

Understanding what our happiness is, can be hard to fathom. Why? Because sometimes

there is just so much that we have to do in order to achieve something that can sometimes feel

out of reach. And at other times, we might know what our own happiness is because it sometimes

only lingers for a brief moment and then we move on. So, how do we truly understand our own

happiness and how do we keep it consistent so that we can live a fulfilled life of genuine

happiness. These questions have been contemplated by the Hedonists, Cynics and Stoic

Philosophers of our time. I will be talking about these Philosophers beliefs and theories, and

what they justify as happiness. In addition, Ill be including my experience with these theories

and how I indulged in their beliefs.

Hedonism Cyrenaic and Epicureanism

Hedonists have several related theories on what is good for us as humans, how we should

behave and the things that inspire us to do what we do. It is very broad and they identify that

pain and pleasure are the only important elements of whatever phenomena they are designed to

describe.1 Simply put: Pleasure is good and Pain is bad. The things that are good to us, we should

continue to seek and enjoy. While anything that brings discomfort, pain or frustration should be

avoided. This is both from a physical and mental aspect and is fairly expansive on what good and

bad are. What they are telling us is that our individual needs and wants are the most important

thing that exists.

Aristippus who was a follower of Socrates was a smart and clever individual, while a bright

person, many Socratics saw him as an annoying and felt he behaved like a sophists, in a way he

did because he would travel and collect wages from people and they were very high. Eventually

1 Dan Wiejers iep.utm.edu/hedonism

after some time of traveling he opened and founded the Cyrenaic school of Philosophy. His

Hedonistic view of ethics are centered around the question of what the 'end' is; that is, what goal

our actions aim at and what is valuable for its own sake.1 His doctrine was known as Cyrenaic

Hedonism, he believed that pleasure is the motive for living and that pleasure is good no matter

what, regardless of where it comes from.2 Believing that every single person sought out pleasure

whether they knew it or not. This was an extreme belief because he determined this by the

quantity of pleasure; the more the merrier. That seeking it out is our nature as humans, we should

not deter from other thoughts and only strive for true pleasure for ourselves and no one else. We

directly live for our pleasures. 3 On top of this he believed that sensory of physical pleasure is the

best and important of all, it is superior to all other senses.

This theory in life was to maximize all of these physical pleasures. Eat and indulge in

foods you love, play games all you want, have a lot of sex. You enjoy anything and everything

you desire to the fullest extent. As well as minimizing all the pain you witness and come into

contact with, you just push the negatives aside, so it doesnt hurt the pleasure you pursue. I can

relate to this and the pleasure by comparing it to my past when I was younger. All I wanted was

to pursue women for sexual intercourse and nothing else. I did not seek mental stimulation or a

sense of nurture or comfort. I only sought physical pleasure, and I felt it fulfilled my happiness.

This awareness for my pleasure made me feel strong, dominant and powerful. And when I felt

a type of discomfort such as commitment, unnecessary responsibility or emotional need, I would

just detach myself from that person because I didnt want to deal with it. I continued on for years

1 Time O Keefe iep.utm.edu/aristip/

2 Soccio, Archtypes of Wisdom. P. 183

3 Soccio, Archtypes of Wisdom. P. 183

after that with no remorse and I naturally felt that this was the lifestyle I would continue to live, a

Cyrenaic Hedonist lifestyle.

Now, Epicurus whom developed an unsparingly materialistic metaphysics, empiricist

epistemology, and hedonistic ethic.1 This man considered himself a self-taught philosopher, as

well as studied the works of Plato and Aristotle, but he never actually accepted their teachings.

He created a school called the Garden, a place that was very different from a typical society at

the time. His school allowed anyone and everyone, no matter their social class, race or gender.

He allowed slaves and prostitute, simply anyone who had the desire to learn. Epicurus promoted

that the quality of life was to find pleasure within intelligence and choosing simplicity in things

such as food and pleasure. Living simply was a way to avoid unnecessary pain. That we should

seek conversations with others that provided a positive meaning and enjoying our time with

friends. Understanding the quality of ones life is to live it to its finest moments. Compared to

Cyrenaic Hedonism this was a different spectrum where enjoying the simple things in life and

nature, rather than indulge in a rigorous affair of things that are extreme. The greatest good is a

piece of mind, not intense or exquisite physical pleasure. 2

Going back to how I spoke of being with women for physical intimacy in my past, I

didnt realize the pain that I instilled until the roles flipped. I met someone who I began to

develop genuine feelings for, someone who had a quality that was phenomenal and infectious.

However, they had the mentality of a Cyrenaic Hedonist, one that I was all too familiar with.

They viewed me as another person for pleasure, and had the mentality to look for more after they

got what they needed (quantity). I was heart broken and the pain that enveloped was that of a

1 Time OKeefe iep.utm.edu/epicur/

2 Shannon Atkinson Class notes, Handout 7 (2017)

feeling of death inside. From there I understood the balance that had to be met within a

relationship, that we should seek a quality of life within peoples mind more so than just a

physical pleasure, but also understand the pain that comes with it. Pursing our pleasures in

moderation is a virtue.

Cynicism

The founders of Cynicism, or cynics as they were known, by Antisthenes and his

disciple Diogenes believed that the very essence of civilization is corrupt, that civilization

destroys individuals by making them weak and subject to the whims of fortune. 1 What they

mean by this is that they see society and its people as selfish, they assume the worst in everyone.

The materials, wealth, power and success weaken peoples tendencies and they become dishonest

in their endeavors. That the society needs to reject the social norms and ethical values, if we are

able to do this we can reach a balanced virtue. The philosophers aims were to advocate self-

discipline and cultivate wisdom. The less an individual needs to be happy, the less vulnerable he

or she is.2 Antisthenes was a follower of Socrates and only Socrates, he despised Plato and

Aristotle. He admired Socrates for his fashion and his convictions but took his teachings a step

further by voicing the corruption in the world. And together with is student Diogenes they

showed society the cynic lifestyle.

The way I view a cynics lifestyle, is that to be nothing, in turn you wont have to crave

anything and everything. The use of cell phones, lunch boxes, socks, water bottles, etc. are not

necessary and though they may seem convenient, as a society we do not need to have these

things in order to be happy. And relating this back to relationships, the belief that everyone will

1 Soccio, Archetypes of Wisdom, P. 187

2 Soccio, Archetypes of Wisdom, p. 187

find love and they will find their significant other is perceived as ridiculous. The beliefs that love

from romantic movies are how true love really is, thats another ridiculous view. It just doesnt

happen, love can and will be unfair in life at times. This is something they would see as not being

necessary in ones life. Though I disagree with this view, it has a significant way we should

perceive life and its nature. We have to learn to detach ourselves from certain things but not all

things we see as unfit. Luckily, Cynicism did not last long, and eventually the people who

followed its teaching became hostile, arrogant and they despised all the people around them that

did not believe in their ways. Thats why in life now the word cynical is seen as something

negative.

Stoicism

Stoicism originated as a Hellenistic philosophy, founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium. It

was influenced by Socrates and the Cynics, and it engaged in vigorous debates with the Skeptics,

the Academics, and the Epicureans.1 The stoics sought out a way for a peace of mind through

disciplining oneself. By accepting what you can control and detach from what you cant control.

They also believed that ones life is not entirely their own. 2 Logos which is the Fate and divine

reason in Stoicism, that if we could control ourselves, not complain and master our own minds,

we could control the emotions we have and in that we can understand happiness. Everything is a

matter of attitude, and nothing can make you happy or unhappy without your consent. 3 Simply

put it is taming the beast of our emotions. An example is being in a classroom, you cant tell the

1 Massimo Pigliucci - iep.utm.edu/stoicism

2 Soccio, Archetypes of Wisdom. p. 193

3 Shannon Atkinson Handout 7 (2017)

teacher what to, nor can you tell the students what to since they are controlled by the universe,

but you can tell yourself what to do because you are in control of the outcome.

There are two philosophers of this theory that showed how we could better understand

and measure our ability on things we cannot control. Epictetus, born a slave and sent to study

stoicism with one of the most powerful Stoics learned that even though he was learning, he could

be sold or bought by someone and he had no control over, that even when he was tortured and

beaten the control he knew he had was that of his own reaction. He even endured a beating that

was not his fault and simply accepted the fate that was given to him. Not complaining or

questioning his masters will. Epictetus lived by his motto: Bear and Forbear. 1

Marcus Aurelius, know as the Philosopher king and a Stoic, was an emperor and one that was

kind and showed mercy to the people. While he was mocked for his ruling, and seen as oblivious

to the life that he had been bestowed, he understood just like Epictetus that his attitude is what

controlled his happiness of life. There were rumors of his wife sleeping with other men while

absent in dealing with military campaigns, he dealt with the deaths of 4 out of 5 of his sons, he

had an incompetent step-brother and his co-emperor. While things like this would drain the

average mans soul and could cause them to lose the light of day, Marcus Aurelius accepted his

own virtue and took control of it and endured it whole heartedly.

Going back to the relationships I had in my past, I had one girl that I was in love with and

one day she simply just disappeared, I didnt know why, she was just gone. After a week or so I

eventually found out she left me for another man, but my reaction at that point was not anger or

hate. I had this feeling that hit me that I didnt quite understand, and this was long before I knew

what Stoicism was. I had this relief that I would be ok because her decision was of her own, and

1 Soccio, Archetypes of Wisdom. P.191

that if I was upset, it would not do me any good. I felt calm about the situation and I saw it as a

sign that the relationship just wasnt right, and I should just continue my life and move on to

what would be next. I understood the control I had at that moment, and it simply felt right.

Happiness

While all of these philosophies and theories have their principles and rule, with positives

and negatives for happiness, its important to learn the meanings and teachings from all these

individuals. Not only does it help improve our quality of life, but it adds a genuine meaning to it,

which helps us to determine what happiness is. Happiness is in the eye of the beholder. And we

all make our own choices and decisions in our lives. Its what we decide to do that will determine

what our happiness can and will be in the present and future. We have to evaluate what the social

norms are within our own societies, and understand how to balance them rather than allow them

to just push us in a direction that could lead to unhappiness. As we seek what philosophy we

decide to partake in or accept, we learn more about ourselves, about the people we come in

contact with and how we show our emotions, our control, our differences in the world.

Happiness is up to us, we can control it but we have to bring that attitude, positivity and balance

into the mix, when we do this a genuine sense of happiness can be achieved.
 Work Cited

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2010.

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<http://www.iep.utm.edu/hedonism/>.

Piering, Julie. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. University of Arkansas at Little Rock, n.d.
Web. 03 Mar. 2017. <http://www.iep.utm.edu/cynics/>.

Pigliucci, Masssimo. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. City University of New York, n.d.
Web. 03 Mar. 2017. <http://www.iep.utm.edu/stoicism/>.

O'Keefe, Time. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2017.
<http://www.iep.utm.edu/aristip/>.

O'Keefe, Tim. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2017.
<http://www.iep.utm.edu/epicur/>.

Benham, Paul. "Www.pben.info." Wwwpbeninfo. Popkin RH and Stroll A, Philosophy Made

Simple, n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2017. <http://pben.info/wp/?p=187>.

Shannon Atkinson. Class Notes, Introduction to Philosophy 1000 (2016-2017)