Philosophy of happiness

Hobbes, Plato, Aristotle, Kant, and Buddha are among the philosophers who have expressed their views on happiness. Hobbes and Aristotle took two opposite accounts of happiness. Hobbes account of happiness is that it is made up of successive attempts to have present desires while Aristotle argues that happiness is a lifelong journey of attaining fulfillment through virtue. Hobbes account of happiness is criticized by various accounts of Aristotle’s argument of happiness. Hobbs account on happiness Hobbes argues that all mankind is generally inclined to happiness. Based on the arguments, Hobbes theory focuses on happiness being a final good. This also applies to power and its acquisition thereof. He emphasizes that power is a human motivation, which implies that power, its acquisition, and the process involved in attaining it is a final good.

Thus, happiness is not a felicity because felicity is an outcome of the continuous exercising of power and not necessary what a person desires (Foisneau 486-7). This interpretation suggests that Hobbes’ morality is perspectival. Happiness is not sought for anything else other than euphoria and humans must have a justification that nothing else can deliver ultimate good apart from euphoria (Raftari 714). Aristotle gives a criterion for understanding euphoria. He explains that if X is good and is considered a euphoria but later it is realized that Y is good such that the sum of X and Y is better than X, then X no longer qualifies to be a euphoria. In his criterion, Aristotle does not specify the kind of life that delivers euphoria to humans.

However, a better definition of euphoria can be established by focusing on the functions and roles of man. A necessary condition to something is not the thing in itself. The practical value of pleasure is the measure of pleasure derived from something. Each pleasure has its own specific feeling that it evokes. To Aristotle, some pleasures are evil and a life that is primarily based on pleasure and not reason is not appropriate for human beings (Raftari 716). There are two key ethical systems; the earthly and the heavenly. The second feature is that the goodness of euphoria is independent. Therefore, a man’s euphoria is the one he innately desires, which means that it is innately independent. Thus, euphoria is God and when men move closer to God, they move closer to euphoria (Raftari 716).