The term "hedonism" has ancient Greek roots. This is the teaching that the main purpose of earthly existence is to receive pleasure. That is, from the point of view of hedonism, the highest good for a person is to live an easy, carefree life, getting the maximum pleasure from all its sides, and in every possible way to avoid all that is unpleasant, painful.
How hedonism arose
According to Wikipedia, hedonism is a doctrine according to which a person should strive, first of all, to receive pleasure from everything. what surrounds him. It is believed that the founder of hedonism was Aristippus, an ancient Greek philosopher who lived in 435-355. BC. He argued that a person’s soul can be in two states: pleasure and pain. A happy person, according to Aristippus, is one who manages to have fun as often as possible. And this pleasure, first of all, should be physical, felt. For example, a person enjoys delicious food and delicious drinks, intimacy with a partner, comfortable clothing, a hot bath, etc.
The emotional pleasure (from a beautiful landscape, listening to music, watching a play, etc.) Aristippus put in a secondary place, although he recognized its significance.
The doctrine of hedonism was further developed in the writings of other philosophers, in particular, Epicurus. According to Epicurus, the highest happiness and enjoyment in life can be obtained by getting rid of pain and suffering. But pain and suffering are often a natural consequence of excesses, lack of healthy moderation. For example, if you eat too much, you should not be surprised at digestive problems. Or if a person leads an too idle lifestyle, protecting himself from the slightest exertion, he may have problems with his heart and joints as a result. Therefore, Epicurus called for reasonable moderation in everything.
The English philosopher and sociologist W. Bentan, who lived in the 18th – 19th centuries, called these views of Epicurus hedonic prudence.