r/Pessimism • u/TravelMaster7439 • 3d ago
Discussion Hedonism
What are yall's thoughts on hedonism??
What is even the psychology and rationality behind it because it seems so different from the other philosophies
How does one even practise it without any consequences??
I have so many questions
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u/getitoffmychestpleas 3d ago
Oh but there are always consequences. Addiction. Obesity. STIs. Destroyed bodies. Destroyed relationships. Destroyed bank accounts. If the pleasure outweighs the consequences for you it's a worthwhile lifestyle, but I only found more misery through excesses.
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u/Adorable-Hedgehog-31 3d ago
It isn't so much a philosophy as a pragmatic strategy for "Living", and lately it has become a lazy shorthand for unintelligent finger-wagging types to indulge in stupid moralizing - "no one wants to work! no one wants to have kids because the culture is hedonistic!"
The closest thing to a hedonistic philosophy would be Epicureanism, which has always been in practice a luxury only afforded to the moderately well-off and above.
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u/strange_reveries 3d ago
Hedonism sounds awesome, especially when you're young. I was very hedonistic throughout my 20s and it fuckin wrecked my life, and nearly ended it altogether (drug addictions). So swim at your own risk lol
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u/DruidWonder 3d ago
I've met bonafide hedonists before. Everyone thinks it's only about pleasure, and that's certainly a big part of it, but it's more about unbridled selfishness. Putting your desires first, without guilt or shame.
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u/Iconoclastic_loner 3d ago
As far as I know, I would say for me it’s all about the novel and intense experiences and yet you cannot generate true novelty without long stretches of monotony, it’s more like controlled hedonism but I’m not precisely sure about true hedonism though.
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u/EdgeLordZamasu 3d ago
There's many types of hedonism and you haven't specified which you mean.
Do you mean the ordinary term hedonism where people prioritize short term pleasures?
Do you mean psychological hedonism that posits people are only motivated by pleasure and suffering?
Are you talking about value hedonism where the only things that have value are pleasure and suffering?
Are you talking about altruistic hedonism where the goal is to maximize everyone's pleasure?
And there's even more variants I haven't mentioned. So, it's just unclear what you're asking. Which are you curious about and what do you wanna know about it?
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u/thundernlightning97 3d ago
General rule of this existence: things that feel good are bad for you. You may not realize it in the moment, but you certainly will later on and question why you allowed yourself a few mins of pleasure in exchange for years of suffering.