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Chapter Four:
Value and the Quest
for the Good
What sort of things are valuable?
Convenience Machine example
Intrinsic and Instrumental Value
Intrinsic
goods: good because of their nature
and are not derived from other goods
Instrumental goods: worthy of desire because
they are effective means of attaining our intrinsic
goods
The Value of Pleasure
Hedonism: The doctrine that holds that
all pleasure is good, that pleasure is
the only thing good in itself, and that
all other goodness is derived from
this value.
Hedonism comes from the Greek word
hedon, which means pleasure.
Hedonists Subdivide into
Two Categories
Sensualism:
the view that equates all pleasure
with sensual enjoyment
Satisfactionism:
the view that equates all
pleasure with satisfaction or enjoyment,
which may not involve sensuality.
Nonhedonists
Are divided into two separate groups:
1. Monists: Believe that there is a
single intrinsic value, but it is
not pleasure.
2. Pluralists: Admit that pleasure is
an intrinsic good, but that there are
other intrinsic goods as well.
Are Values Objective or Subjective?
Objectivist View: Values are worthy of desire
whether or not anyone actually desires them.
Values exist independently.
Subjectivist View: Values are dependent on
desirers and are relative to desirers.
Relation of Value to Morality
Value Theory
is at the heart of Moral Theory.
From our values we derive principles.
We judge which principle to use, then decide
what to do.
Weakness of will: meaning to do the right
thing, but being too morally weak to accomplish
the task.
The Good Life
Aristotle
(384-322 BCE) believed that all
people seek happiness.
Eudaimonia:
not merely a subjective state of
pleasure or contentment, but the kind of life we
would all want to live if we understood our
essential nature.
The Good Life
John
Rawls' “plan of life” conception of
happiness:
There is a plurality of life plans open to each
person, and what is important is that the plan
be an integrated whole, freely chosen by the
person and that the person be successful in
realizing his or her goals
The Good Life
Missing
ingredients from the Happiness
Machine necessary for the happy life:
Action
Freedom
Character
Relationships

The Good Life
Moderate objectivism view
of happiness:
Happiness is life in which there exists free
action (including meaningful work), loving
relations, and moral character and in which
the individual is not plagued by guilt and
anxiety bit is blessed with peace and
satisfaction.