Epicurean Hedonism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Epicurean Hedonism - Essay ExampleIt is this emphasis on unadulterated pleasure that has created a ruckus, but which is unfounded as get out be shown.According to Epicurus, Pleasure is our first and kindred good. It is the beginning -point of every choice and of every aversion, and to it we come back, inasmuch as we make feeling the rule by which to arbiter of every good thing (Qtd. from Cook). 1 He believes that the essential truth of this statement is so obvious, that it renders struggle and reasoning unnecessary. It is his belief that we are born with an intimate knowledge of the fact that pleasure is good and unhinge evil it is the skepticism which is an inevitable accompaniment of the ageing process that makes the truth so elusive for adults. heretofore the pursuit of pleasure must be governed by temperance. A glutting of the senses with sensual delights can cause trouble oneself in the long run therefore careful judgment must be exercised in set out to derive the maxim um pleasure that life has to offer.The fulfillment of desire is closely linked to gaining pleasure and Epicurus has a word of caution on the subject. There is pleasure in the satisfaction of desire, but more oftentimes than not this is short-lived as more desires take the place of the one that has been fulfilled and soon unfading desire takes the form of an insatiable monster, which is hardly conducive to pleasure. Thus an effort must be do to curb desire this is done by settling for the bare necessities and resisting the temptation to over-indulge oneself. Epicurus distinguishes between desires where rough are natural, others are groundless and that of the natural some are necessary as well as natural, and some natural only (Qtd. from Cook).2 Epicurus sets much store by wisdom, as it is ignorance which is responsible for a lack of perceptiveness between good and evil that is the cause of so much misery and turmoil. Wisdom is the wellspring from which the virtues of prudence, bravery and justice spring forth. The inherent values of these virtues are largely irrelelevant as the only purpose they shell out is towards achieving happiness. Cicero puts this most succinctly, we aim at these virtues in order to live without fretfulness and upkeep and so off the beaten track(predicate) as possible to be free from pain of mind and body(Qtd.from Cook).3 Epicurean philosophy is immensely valuable to the present day insofar as his arguments go towards overcoming the unreasonable yet prevalent fear of last. With death there is a cessation of sensation, therefore since it involves neither pain nor pleasure, it never has and never will pose a threat to the living. An understanding of this premise goes a long way in removing anxiety which throws an unpleasant pall over the future. Death according to Epicurus is nothing to us, seeing that, when we are, death is not come, and, when death is come, we are not (Qtd. from Cook). 4Distinguishing Epicurean Hedonism from Cy renaicism Much of the notoriousness surrounding Epicurean hedonism and the stigma of moral licentiousness, addicted to it, when it fact it is rather a model of asceticism, stems from its doctrines often being confused with Cyrenaicism. Aristippus was the founder