Hedonism vs. Epicureanism

1 Commentby   |  09.06.10  |  Pre-Renaissance (Part I)

<span style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:
Arial”>Ever since my senior year of high school, I always thought I was
somewhat of a Hedonist, but last Wed. in class, a differentiation of Hedonism
and Epicureanism was made in passing. Epicureanism is not something I had ever
been informed about before and I always knew that there was something that
didn't quite fit within the description of Hedonism, so it was somewhat of a
revelation of identity to have that put forward. Epicureanism holds that joy in
moderation should be the ultimate goal of life, and I absolutely agree. God
created us and placed us here that we might live life to the fullest. It is an
innate property of humanity to seek out pleasurable experiences and eliminate
the unpleasant ones. The refined nature of Epicureanism in stating that it need
be in moderation however is the true selling point in my mind. Hedonism is more
of an uninhibited gluttony of pleasure, while Epicureanism is a calculated
indulgence where practical. This difference seems to be more of a safeguard
than an actual ideological shift. If the sole focus of an individual is the
attainment of pleasure, then that same individual is blind to the dangers and
requirements of life around him to continue simply to exist, let alone enjoy life.
Ultimately to me, Epicureanism would seem to be more of a canopy theory that is
behind all others, and is not particularly any profound revelation, just a very
adequate statement of what so many people believe and strive for on their own.

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1 Comment

  1. Ian Robertson
    3:34 pm, 09.12.10

    You make an interesting point. But I would have to ask the question, is there any room for Epicureanism in modern society? It seems that society forces us to take extremes. In the United States, people tend to gorge themselves on television, music, and other forms of electronic media. The very same media that pushes us to take on extremes of bodily form, the skinniest women and super buff men. I find it interesting that the more we submerge ourselves into an electronic world, the currents of Capitalism seem to want to bring us further into that world. Even ACU is pushing the electronic agenda, every student being equipped with an itouch and testing out new books on iPads. I wonder on how easy it is to strike a balance, a golden mean in a world that wants us to take something and take it even further to turn a profit.

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