Ethical Egoism
Hurricane Charley
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2004
Sweeps across Florida.
22 dead.
$11 billion in damages.
• $2 bags of ice now $10.
• $40 motel room now $160.
• $250 household
generators no $2,000. Is it immoral for individual business
owners to pursue their own interest
of maximum financial gain by
capitalizing on what others are willing
to pay to pursue their own interest of
survival in the wake of natural
disaster?
“Ethical Egoism is the theory that the right
action is the one that advances one’s own best
interests” (78).
• Moral Theory vs. Moral Code.
• Right action.
• Interests and best interests.
• Egoism vs. Egotism.
• Psychological Egoism vs.
Ethical Egoism.
• Ethical Egoism vs. Ethical
Subjectivism and
Emotivism.
• Act-Egoism vs. RuleEgoism.
• Selfish vs. Self-Interest.
Argument for Ethical Egoism #1: Altruism is Self Defeating
• Can we advocate for the
interests of others?
• Without harming them?
The Argument:
1. We ought to do whatever will
best promote everyone’s interests.
2. The best way to promote
everyone’s interests is for each of us
to adopt a policy of pursuing our
own interests exclusively.
3. Therefore, each of us should
adopt the policy of pursuing our
own interests exclusively.
• Can you spot the problem for
Ethical Egoists with this
argument?
Argument for Ethical Egoism #2: E.E. Respects the Value of the
Individual Life
1.
If we value the individual—that is,
if the individual has moral
worth—then we must agree that
this life is of supreme importance.
2.
The ethics of Altruism regards the
life of the individual as something
one must be ready to sacrifice for
the good of others.
3.
Ethical Egoism, which allows each
person to view his or her own life
as being of ultimate value, does
take the human individual
seriously.
4.
Thus, Ethical Egoism is the
philosophy we ought to accept.
• Is this a compelling argument?
Argument for Ethical Egoism #3: E.E. is Compatible with
Commonsense Morality
“Do unto others” because if
we do, others will be more
likely to “do unto us.”
• The duty to not harm
others.
• The duty to not lie.
• The duty to keep
promises.
The Morality Trap
• In Browne’s moral framework,
what is the value of others’
interests?
• What is the morality trap?
• For Browne, what is the
function of morality?
• In Browne’s moral
framework, what are
“personal values” and how
are they relevant to ethics?
• What, according to Browne, is
“universal morality” and what
is its weakness?
Browne’s Arguments by Analogy
• The morality trap is like
the identity trap (i.e. it
is like the trap that
leads you to try to be
something other than
yourself).
• Happiness is a like a big
red rubber ball. I can
hold the ball and keep
my happiness or give it
away to someone who
will, in turn, give it
away, and on and on.
• Fair analogy?
• Fair analogy?
Can Ethical Egoism Be Defended against these Charges:
• Resolves conflicts of
interest by encouraging
people to fight as hard
as possible for their
own interests and to
crush opponents.
• It is unacceptably
arbitrary because it
requires us to privilege
our interests over the
interests of others
simply on the basis that
these interests are ours.
What Does Ethical Egoism Look Like in Practice?
• A pharmacist fills prescriptions
for cancer patients with
watered down drugs and,
thereby, increases his profits.
• Parents feed a baby acid so
they can fake a lawsuit,
claiming the baby’s formula
was tainted.
• A 13 year old girl is kidnapped
by a neighbor and kept
shackled in a basement for
181 days while she is sexually
abused.
If each person can get away
with the act, what objection
could the Ethical Egoist
offer?
• A paramedic gives emergency
patients injections of sterile
water rather than morphine so
he can sell the morphine.
Assessment
• What are the strengths of
Ethical Egoism? Its
weaknesses?
• Is it a viable ethical theory?
• How would we explain it to
a child?
• Is Social Contract Theory
compatible with Ethical
Egoism?