Before I can begin with the argumentative side of the paper, it is necessary that some background information on Epicurus be given. Epicurus was both a hedonist as well as an egoist, and was very concerned with how people get happiness. He was a psychological hedonist because he argued that we aim only at pleasure for its own sake. He was an ethical hedonist because he believed that only pleasure has true value. Similarly, he was called both a psychological and ethical egoist because he claimed that what we are aiming for and what is valuable to each of us is our own pleasure. (Epicurus (1994) text 4) With this in mind, we are ready to move on to the arguments for why the only thing we desire for its own sake is pleasure, and why it is best to keep our desires simple.

First we will examine the thesis "The only thing we desire for its own sake is pleasure." As Epicurus argued in throughout his writings, "pleasure is the goal." (Epicurus (1994) text 1.11) It is also is "the starting point ... of living blessedly" (Epicurus (1994) text 4.128). In other words, what he was getting at was that everything we do, we do for the sake ultimately of gaining pleasure for ourselves. It seems as though we have a human nature to seek out things that benefit us personally. For example, say you and a friend are up for a promotion at your workplace. Your friend needs the promotion far more than you do, but you really want it. From natural instinct you will try and do your best and work your hardest in the next few weeks before the promotion decision. You are going to try and get the promotion because it is what you really want and it would bring you the greatest pleasure in the end.

Some skeptics of Epicurus would argue that a person in such a position should step down and let their friend, who really needs the promotion, the opportunity to receive the position. However, Epicurus would argue, according to his ethics that a person in this position would simply go for the promotion rather than feel morally obligated to back down. Though it might be unbeknownst to the person, they will push their needs of their friend aside in order to achieve what will make them truly happy. This is because we all solely seek the ultimate pleasure as the final goal of our actions.

We also seek pleasure because we hate to experience pain and do everything we can to avoid it. However, while we do everything that we can to avoid pain, we also might have to forgo what will bring one less pleasure in the short-term if doing so will ultimately lead us to greater pleasure in the long term. Taking a college calculus course is a perfect example of this. While the agonizing over exam grades and loads of homework may be very painful at the time, the rewards of passing the class and thus fulfilling a major requirement will be far more pleasurable.

It also can be argued that pleasure really has intrinsic value. We seek pleasure for the feeling it brings, not for something else. For example, we use cough medicine to find relief from our cough. When seeking out pleasure though we find something that simply brings us that pleasure and we are satisfied. Since it is natural for us to desire pleasure, it is best to keep our desires and wants to a minimum in order to make it easier to achieve satisfaction. Thus I will next argue for the thesis that it is best to keep our desires simple.

[Note: this paper is posted on the internet, at http://cda.morris.umn.edu/~okeefets/pleasure-paper.html. It is the work of a student at the University of Minnesota, Morris!]

As said before, pleasure is what makes us happy. Epicurus argues that we actually need very little to make us happy. It is not that there is anything wrong with luxury in itself, but any dependence on luxuries is harmful to our happiness as is every desire for unnecessary things. He states that "simple not extravagant ways of life makes one healthy, unhesitant, and better prepared for times of extravagance" (Epicurus (1994) text 131). Thus it is best to focus on natural and necessary desires such as food, shelter, and drink, rather than natural and non-necessary, or vain and empty desires. Natural and necessary desires are both naturally limited and easy to satisfy, bringing us the greatest pleasure when satisfied.

Natural and non-necessary desires while occurring naturally to us, are often times out of reach, and are not necessary to our survival. They consist of things like luxury food and drink, expensive cars, and designer clothes, which are harder to come by. These types of desires take away from pleasurable experiences as we are often left wondering how to fulfill such lavish wants. For example, say you are used to shopping at expensive department stores were they only sell designer clothes, but you move out into Hickville where the nearest department store is 500 miles away and you are forced to shop at the local Walmart. Now the stress and hassle of trying to find a way to still shop at department stores outweighs the pleasure of all those designer clothes. You would have been much better off buying from discount stores in the first place, so that if a shopping trip resulted in a new piece of designer clothing it would be much more appreciated.

Vain and empty desires are also bad as they are totally unlimited and based on groundless opinion, that is, they are acquired from cultural and societal ideals. They are incredibly hard to satisfy as one is always left wanting more, and thus bring very little pleasure. Epicurus said it best with the following statement: "For no imprudent man is satisfied with what he has but rather is distressed by what he does not have" (Epicurus (1994) text 141). Desires for things like fame, wealth, and power are never satisfied. Take power for instance, once you have achieved a certain level that is no longer good enough. You then want more power, but soon that will not be good enough either, and yet more power will be craved, continuing the vicious cycle. While you may be happy for a brief period of time, you will soon become dissatisfied and you will never be able to achieve true pleasure.

Simple desires create self-sufficiency. Epicurus believed that being in control of your own desires is a great thing as it allows you to be come more self-sufficient. The less people that one has to depend on, the easier it is for that person to fulfill their wants. If you are dependent on people to fulfill your desires, you may be let down or may not achieve your desired results, thus diminishing your pleasure. Self-sufficiency is also good because if you have a small set of desires that you can satisfy yourself, you can face the future with confidence. With a simple set of desires, you will not have to worry about having luxury items because you will have no desire for them. By doing this you will cancel out anxiety, the worst type of pain that robs you of pleasure. Anxiety is the worst type of pain because it deters from a good life of tranquility that you are trying to achieve. By the above examples, it is clear that the simple life truly brings less pain; the less pain we experience the more pleasure we gain.

As with every argument, objections and disagreements will follow, with this paper being no exception. The first protest might be against the idea of pleasure being desired for its own sake, as it appears that there are people who do care about other things. A parent sacrificing his/her life for their child would be one such example. However, while at first it may appear as though the parent is solely sacrificing his/her life for that child, it is not the actual case. It would deeply pain that parent to watch his/her child suffer or hurt, and as stated before, we do anything possible to avoid pain. Thus the parent sacrifices his/her own life in order to not have to experience the pain of grieving for their child. The situation would also be the same even if it just involved a friend, family member, or anyone else close to you.

[Note: this paper is posted on the internet, at http://cda.morris.umn.edu/~okeefets/pleasure-paper.html. It is the work of a student at the University of Minnesota, Morris!]

There are also the people who are self-destructive and do hurtful things against themselves because they want to suffer or hate who they are. Yes, at first it may appear as though those people do not desire pleasure for its own sake as they are causing themselves agony. The problem is however, that such self-destructive people are already in great pain. Thus by creating hurtful acts towards themselves, they are trying to reduce and eliminate the pain that they are experiencing. For instance, they may try to escape from their agony through the use of drugs and alcohol. By eliminating the pain in the short-term presence of time, it gives them a false sense of tranquility. The hurtful acts they commit towards themselves are a source of control for them. The acts allow them to have control over what they actually have to experience in reality. The more control one has of his life, the more confidence he can face the future with, thus bringing a greater overall feeling of pleasure.

Next we will look at the objection that a simple life would be "boring." Those without a simple life, in other words, those with lots of needs, wants, and desires, will constantly be trying to fulfill those things. They will feel the need to achieve more, more, and more, spending the rest of their lives trying to work for "one last thing that will make them happy. In the end though happiness will not be found because there will still be that one area of their life left that they must satisfy. That is why the simple life is so wonderful. With minimal needs and desires, they are much easier to satisfy and achieve. Take for instance the Tibetan monks who lead a very religious-based existence. They live a very simple, humble life with few possessions and lots of prayer, yet they are happy. The do not find the simple life boring at all, instead they find that it as a state that brings them greater tranquility as well as greater pleasure. I think that the following statement says it all, "Nothing is enough to someone for whom enough is little" (Epicurus (1994) text 68).

Then there is the objection that extravagances can be very pleasant and should not be avoided. For example, lobster and steak taste much better and are far more desirable than beans and rice. While this may be true, by becoming accustomed to such luxuries they are no longer extravagances. Instead they almost turn into a "need" and if one cannot come by them it causes much anxiety and despair. Say for instance that you feast on lobster every Saturday, but for some reason the lobster prices skyrocket and you can no longer afford it. Now you have to try and figure out how you are going to come up with "extra" money for your Saturday night feasts that you are so used to. Instead you would have been better off only having lobster occasionally, so as it would have been more of a treat than expectancy. You enjoy extravagances much better if you happen to come by them than if you expect them.

One last objection that I will look at is that tranquility and lack of pain really aren't pleasurable, as they are conditions of a corpse. I choose to argue against that. With lack of pain comes tranquility and content. There is no anxiety or fear that eats away at a person, thus they are able to face their future with a strong feeling of confidence. This is what makes static pleasures, pleasures that occur after a want or desire has been satisfied, so pleasurable. For example, say you have had a very hard day at work and you are incredibly tense and frustrated. You are able to see a massage therapist and receive an hour-long massage. When you get off of the table you feel very relaxed and content. This peacefulness and tranquility that you are feeling does not resemble anything of a corpse. In all reality this feeling of relaxation is a tremendous pleasure to you.

Indeed it is quite clear after the above arguments that pleasure is the only thing that we desire for its own sake. It is also clear that not every pleasure should be taken, nor every pain avoided. Instead we should focus on what will bring us pleasure in the long run. Secondly, it is important that we keep our desires simple in order to achieve the greatest feeling of pleasure. One should not wish for more of something, but rather reduce their desires. It is these two arguments that form one of the building blocks for Epicurus' ethics.

WORKS CITED

Epicurus. The Epicurus Reader: Selected Writings and Testimonia. Hackett Publishing Company, Inc., 1994. Translated and Edited by Brad Inwood and L.P. Gerson.