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Ethical Egoism: Person
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Ethical Egoism is not agreed upon by everyone. Rachels states that it is not technically possible for a person to be a true Ethical Egoist. The definition of an Ethical Egoist is someone who thinks that everyone should act selfishly all the time. Rachels seems to believe that this in itself is a somewhat unselfish statement. A true Ethical Egoist would not want the whole world to be selfish, (and therefore happy in his eyes.) In this case, there would be no one to make the Ethical Egoist happy. Rachels says "a true Ethical Egoist would encourage others to act benevolently instead of selfishly, for his/her sake" (Rachels, p. 487).
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The term "egoism" was introduced into modern moral philosophy as a label for a type of ethical theory that is structurally parallel to utilitarianism. The latter theory holds that one ought to consider everyone and produce the greatest balance of good over evil; egoism, by contrast, says that each person ought to maximize their own good. Both theories are teleological, in that they hold that the right thing to do is always to produce a certain good. But the utilitarian claims that the good that one is to maximize is the universal good - the good of all human beings and perhaps all sentient creatures. The egoist, on the other hand, holds that the good one is ultimately to aim at is only one's own.
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Machan’s vision of natural rights rests on ethical egoism’s view that human beings ought to pursue their flourishing and happiness. He observes that natural rights are determined by the fact that a person is a human being who has morally chosen to pursue a good and happy social and political life. From the fact of one’s moral responsibility to live a flourishing life and from one’s choice to do so in a social context, it follows that he is obligated to respect others’ rights. He must do this in order to fulfill his initially chosen responsibility to develop himself to the fullest extent as dictated by his human nature and his individual facticity.
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User-created article explains ethical egoism, the belief that one should act in a way to maximize one's personal happiness. Includes a discussion of ethical egoisms proponents, as well as its connection to other ethical theories.
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