Egoism
Mike Delaney
Ethics paper
Psychological egoism is the idea that people do everything with self-interest as their main motivator. If people help others, so even when people are being altruistic they are ultimately doing so because of the gain that they expect to get in one way or another. Psychological egoism is also a theoretical form of egoism because it describes only what is observed and not the way it is supposed to be like in a normative egoism. Thomas Hobbes felt that without some sort of supreme ruler people would live in constant violence because of his theory of psychological egoism stating that people would revert to a state of nature without some sort or ruler because everyone is ultimately selfish and there would be nothing to distinguish between people’s belongings.
Ethical egoism is a normative form of egoism because it describes something that we should do. Ethical egoism states that everyone should act in their own best interest. Ayn Rand however believed in a theory called objective ethics or rational self-interest egoism. She believed that people are rational beings and therefore should act in their best interest. Rand said that being irrational is a bad thing because it goes against survival. Rand said that following rationality involves being independent, having integrity to your self and your beliefs, be truthful and humble, and to be just.
Ethical egoism differs from psychological egoism first by the fact that ethical egoism is a normative form of ethics and psychological egoism is a theoretical form. The main idea in psychological egoism is that people act with their self-interest in mind because of the rewards, whatever they might be, for doing so. However with Ayn Rand’s ethical egoism, people should act in accordance with their self-interest because it would just be inherently wrong not to. Rand also gave guidelines that as being rational beings we should follow, however in the instance of psychological egoism people are
Ethics paper
Psychological egoism is the idea that people do everything with self-interest as their main motivator. If people help others, so even when people are being altruistic they are ultimately doing so because of the gain that they expect to get in one way or another. Psychological egoism is also a theoretical form of egoism because it describes only what is observed and not the way it is supposed to be like in a normative egoism. Thomas Hobbes felt that without some sort of supreme ruler people would live in constant violence because of his theory of psychological egoism stating that people would revert to a state of nature without some sort or ruler because everyone is ultimately selfish and there would be nothing to distinguish between people’s belongings.
Ethical egoism is a normative form of egoism because it describes something that we should do. Ethical egoism states that everyone should act in their own best interest. Ayn Rand however believed in a theory called objective ethics or rational self-interest egoism. She believed that people are rational beings and therefore should act in their best interest. Rand said that being irrational is a bad thing because it goes against survival. Rand said that following rationality involves being independent, having integrity to your self and your beliefs, be truthful and humble, and to be just.
Ethical egoism differs from psychological egoism first by the fact that ethical egoism is a normative form of ethics and psychological egoism is a theoretical form. The main idea in psychological egoism is that people act with their self-interest in mind because of the rewards, whatever they might be, for doing so. However with Ayn Rand’s ethical egoism, people should act in accordance with their self-interest because it would just be inherently wrong not to. Rand also gave guidelines that as being rational beings we should follow, however in the instance of psychological egoism people are