PHIL 1550 Chapter 8: ch 8 - ethical egoism
10 Feb 2017
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Ethical egoism: the normative ethical theory that says that actions are morally right just. Ch 8: ethical egoism b/c they maximize self-interest. Moral theory (unlike psychological egoism psychological theory) There is one ultimate moral duty to improve your own well-being as best you can. Actions are morally right just b/c they best promote one"s. Conflicts b/w self-interest & morality are impossible, b/c our fundamental moral duty is to maximize self-interest. 2 responses to the argument from paradigm cases from egoists : reject 2nd premise. Must claim that killers, rapists, and thieves can never best advance their own interests by perpetrating such crimes. Plato all-powerful tyrants, though able to control & acquire so much in this world, are still doomed to terrible lives. ^ incorrect: bad guys sometimes get away w/ it, have a lot of fun in the meantime, & never regret the harm they have caused: reject 1st premise. Egoist is forced to reject conventional morality.
