THE GOOD LIFE Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 1 Jeremiah 29:11 • I alone know the plans I have for you plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring about the future you hope for. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 2 Good Life • every human being aspires to live a good life • we all define the phrase “good life” differently • to live an honest life, full of integrity, joy and happiness • seek wealth, social status and fame • directly associate the good life with money and material belongings Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria http://www.planetofsuccess.com/blog/2016/what-is-the-good-life/ 3 Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 4 Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 5 Introduction: Eudaimonia • (Eudemonism) (Kōfuku) (yu demo nia) • a state of having a good indwelling spirit • being in a contented state of being healthy, happy and prosperous • the right actions that result in the wellbeing of an individual • well-being is an essential value Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/eudaimonia/ 6 Well-being • experience of health, happiness, and prosperity • = good mental health, high life satisfaction, a sense of meaning or purpose, and ability to manage stress • just feeling well Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 7 Well-being could be described as how you feel about yourself and your life. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 8 Eudaimonia • to have a good guardian spirit • an objective state which characterizes a welllived life regardless of the emotional state of the one experiencing it • any theory that places the personal happiness of an individual and his or her complete life at the core of ethical concern Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 9 History: Socrates believed that • human beings desire the state of good life more than anything else • virtues (justice, courage, self-control and wisdom) were essential and when practiced, sufficient to achieve eudaimonia • virtue: a form of knowledge of both good and evil necessary to achieve the ultimate good desired by all human beings Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 10 Plato suggested that • when an “evil” person does something wrong, there is a feeling of guilt even when there is no fear for punishment for his actions • by doing what is wrong, the person will be miserable • the rational part of the mind and or soul has to lead the emotional, appetitive and spirited parts Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 11 Aristotle emphasized that • eudaimonia is constituted by rational activities that are associated with virtue rather than honor or power • rational (hablijeog-in) (Gōri-tekina) activity has to be manifested as pride, wittiness, friendships that are mutually beneficial, pride and honesty among others Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 12 Aristotle’s 2 versions of Good Life • The theoretical life is spent in contemplation of things that cannot change, like studying the motion of the stars. • Aristotle contends that a life spent in such contemplation is the happiest and most divine. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria https://study.com/learn/lesson/aristotle-eudaimonia-overview-purpose.html 13 Practical Life of Reason • often discussed in ethics • Aristotle devotes much of Nicomachean Ethics • most distinguishing feature of a good practical life is that it involves cultivating multiple virtues • virtues are acquired character traits that aid in human flourishing • = reflect a mean, a middle point, between excessive and deficient feelings, habits, and inclinations. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 14 Nicomachean Ethics • Philosophers aim to define our moral responsibility • Aristotle notes that as a condition to be held morally responsible, we must have been acting voluntarily • In particular, two elements must be true: a person must be in control of her actions and also must be aware of what they're doing Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 15 Practical Life • Aristotle refers to this middle point as the golden mean. • It is not a strict mathematical average, and it requires wisdom to know where it lies. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 16 Courage • a virtue that helps a person lead a good life • a middle point in terms of fear, where excessive fear is cowardice, and deficient fear is brashness (kabastusan) • cowardice and brashness lead to a less rational, less full life Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 17 Courage • Aristotle remarks that one extreme is often preferable to the other, and consequently, it may be helpful to risk the less severe evil • cowardice is worse than being brash, and consequently, the golden mean will be closer to brashness • it will be more acceptable to err on the side of being brash Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 18 According to Aristotle • we come to learn virtues by imitating people of practical wisdom • people with practical wisdom have cultivated their virtues, and they know how to express them in the right way, at the right time, with regard to the right objects, etc. • practical wisdom involves excellence at deliberation • = mark of someone who has developed their rational capacity for things that can change practical human life Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 19 What is happiness according to Aristotle? • Aristotle's definition of happiness is a rational (reasonable) life, and for those living a practical life, that means a life of cultivated virtues. • Aristotle defined eudaimonia by pointing to the rational function of human beings and claiming that a good human life meant being good at using one's reason. • One can develop virtues by using one's reason by finding the golden mean between extremes. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 20 Hedonists including Epicurus • agreed that eudaimonia is the highest good • Epicurus: pleasure is the only thing that human beings value for its own sake • presence or absence of good life becomes something that is immediately apparent to every individual Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 21 Epicurus noted that • in the event that it would ultimately result in greater pleasure in the long term, it may be necessary to omit a short term pleasure • some pleasures were not worth experiencing since they only resulted in greater pains • some pains resulted in greater pleasures, and are therefore worth having Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 22 Stoics believed that • eudaimonia was the highest good to some extent • virtue is essential and enough for eudaimonia • a eudaimonian life is a morally virtuous life • insisted that a moral virtue is essentially good, while a moral vice is bad and anything else, including honor, health and riches, are simply neutral Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 23 Stoic: a person who can endure pain or hardship without showing their feelings or complaining. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 24 Immanuel Kant • opposed the notion that happiness is the highest good • emphasized happiness to be the ingredient of the highest good on the condition that it is deserved Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 25 Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 26 Eudaimonia • whereas happiness is closely associated with an assessment of the quality of an individual’s life, that is purely subjective • eudaimonia is more concerned with a life as a desirably objective • eudaimonia a more encompassing notion as compared to happiness given that bad events that do not affect the happiness experience of an individual, tend to affect their eudaimonia Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 27 http://www.openculture.com/2015/12/plato-aristotle-nietzsche-kants-ideas-on-the-good-life.html What is a good life? • Socrates and Plato • define the good life in terms of reasonable restraint and civic duty • examination of life • the mastery of the self and the contribution to one’s community • attaining mastery over yourself and to contribute to your community Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 28 Friedrich Nietzsche • life is best affirmed by a striving for individual excellence with an idealized aristocracy Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 29 What does a good life look like? The Moral Life • someone is living well or that they have lived a good life • a good person • someone who is courageous, honest, trustworthy, kind, selfless, generous, helpful, loyal, principled, and so on • possess and practice many of the most important virtues Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 30 https://www.huffingtonpost.com/kim-kalicky/what-is-a-good-life_b_6485478.html What is a good life? • A good life is when your outlook have more good days than bad, when life is generally a blessing not a burden. • A person’s “bad” day is as subjective as that person. One person may think a bad day is when he stubs his toe. Another doesn’t think his day is bad until he’s buried under 10 feet of mud in a sudden mudslide out west. “Bad” to one is not “bad” to another. Our outlook determines what we consider “good” or “bad.” Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 31 2 • A good life is one in which we feel loved. • We take comfort in connection with others. The warmth that comes from connection makes us stronger. If we don’t feel alone in the world or that the wolf is at the door, we feel safer Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 32 3 • A good life has you feeling success. • Just like good and bad days, the feeling of success is as unique as we are. Success to some is becoming the President of the Republic of the Philippines while success to others is holding a job on the assembly line giving them the ability to keep a roof over their family’s head and food on the dinner table. Success is never power and money unless that is what the individual deems it is. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 33 4 • A good life allows you to laugh and feel joy. • You may get laughter from playing pranks on others or watching funny movies. Where it comes from and what makes you laugh, unique. What I laugh at is likely not what you laugh at. One of my laugh-out-loud funniest movies was When Harry Met Sally; my husband barely cracked a smile, forget about laughing. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 34 5 • A good life holds beauty. • Whether beauty is nature, aesthetically pleasing meals, a child’s sweet smile, spring flowers in a vase, or the attractiveness of a lover, a key to a good life is seeing beauty around us on a regular basis. Witnessing beauty causes our blood pressure to lower and stress to reduce. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 35 6 • A good life has you putting into every week some things you love to do. • What I love to do isn’t necessarily what you love to do. Only we can say what we love to do as odd or crazy as those things may be. I always drive the road more beautiful and appealing to me, even if it’s a longer route. That little something gives me pleasure and appreciate the surroundings. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 36 Building Blocks of a Good Life • • • • • • PERMA Positive Emotion (P) Engagement (E) Positive Relationships (R) Meaning (M) Accomplishment/Achievement (A) Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 37 Here are several simple ways to live the good life. • Slow Down. Urgency and haste instantly diminish accuracy, awareness and happiness. • Appreciate Life's Simple Pleasures. • Foster and Nurture Relationships. • Be Self Sufficient. • Learn About Different Things. • Concentrate on Your Passions. • Travel to Distant Places. • Talk to Strangers. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 38 Is a private life a happy life? • A private life is a happy life because • it enriches the most important relationship that you will ever have – the one you have with yourself; • it translates to the world that because you have trust within, you're a trustworthy person. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 39 What exactly is the good life and what contributes to living a good life? • for some, the good life is all about bonding • days spent in nature, pondering and philosophizing about life • spend their time in a worthwhile and productive manner • about pleasure, wealth and the fulfillment of all their (material) wishes Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria http://www.planetofsuccess.com/blog/2016/what-is-the-good-life/#good 40 Summary • Living the good life means living a life that sets you free. • A life that satisfies and fulfills you, that adds happiness, joy and a sense of purpose to your life. • But it also means to live a life that is worthwhile – a life that makes a contribution, instead of being solely self-centered. Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 41 What does your good life look like? Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 42 Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 43 Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 44 Prepared by Benjamin D. Doria 45
