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Allie Adcock
Shannon Atkinson
Philosophy Midterm Paper: Topic 3
March 22, 2015
Happy
While growing up, I often heard my grandmother recite different quotes
regarding love, happiness, peace, and life from presidents, political and
religious leaders, writers, and scripture. However, I will never forget the
quote she wrote in a letter to me as I started my freshman year at the
University of Arkansas. Her message was simple and sweet with the wise
words of Herman Cain stating, Success is not the key to happiness.
Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be
successful. After receiving this empowering letter in the mail, I pinned it
onto my corkboard and had Cains wise words on happiness on my mind
constantly.
The Webster dictionary defines happy as a feeling of pleasure or
contentment. However, if you asked people from all around the world from
different parts of history what their definition of happy would be, a wide
range of answers from success to money, from family to love, and/or from
food to friends would be received. The Stoics, Cynics, and Hedonists would
especially have answers that competed with each other. In the search for
happiness, Hedonists believed in the pursuit for pleasure (handout 7),

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therefore concluding that pleasure equals happiness, Cynics believed that a

simple life, free from all possessions brought happiness (handout 7), and
Stoics believed that happiness is detachment from all externals and
happiness comes from within (handout 7). Even though the Hedonists,
Stoics, and Cynics each have different views of what happiness is, its
impossible to say whos right or wrong because happiness is relative to each
person.
Hedonism is the term for philosophy that states pleasure is good and
pain is evilthis statement is the whole premise to Hedonism. According to
Hedonist philosophy, nothing that provides pleasure that can be bad (page
182), inevitably revealing that pleasure is relative to each person. So, do
whatever makes you happy, and do as much as you want of it, because in
the end, all that matters is that the amount of pleasure you experienced
outweighed the amount of pain you feltthis is referred to as maximizing
your net pleasure or pleasure minus pain. Within the philosophy of
hedonism, there are two branches, Cyrenaic, founded by Aristippus, believed
that pleasure, regardless of the source, is good, and Epicurean, founded by
Epicurus, believed that pleasure is the sole intrinsic good and the absence
of pain is the greatest pleasure (page 184). Both branches of hedonism
prove the sole premise of hedonism, pleasure is good and pain is evil.
As humans, I believe we are always in search of pleasure and want to
avoid pain (no one likes pain!). One of my favorite forms of pleasure would
be going out to eat with all of my friends. Theres nothing more pleasurable

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or satisfying to me than being around all my friends drinking lemonade or

sparkling water, eating sushi, pizza, or pasta, and after going to get frozen
yogurt from Menchies. A night like that is completely pleasurable to me, and
in those moments, the pleasure outweighs the pain tenfold. Aristippus,
teacher of the hedonist doctrine known as Cyrenaic Hedonism, taught that
pleasure is the principle motive for livingpleasure is always good
regardless of the source (page 183). Not only did he believe that pleasure is
always good, but he believed that physical pleasures like eating, going on
vacation, and sexual activity are superior to all other things (page 183). It
doesnt matter the quality of your pleasures, all that matter is the quantity or
intensity. As long as your quantity of pleasure outweighed the quantity of
pain, thats all that mattered. I think its easy to say that Cyrenaic Hedonism
can be summed up in a short phrase, if it brings me pleasure, Im going to
do it. However, in the world we live in now-a-days, people believe it is
necessary to go through pain as a sort of cleansing or empowerment for the
future. Cyrenaic Hedonists would ultimately tell you to ONLY search for
pleasure because pleasure is happiness. Our natural hedonism can be
subdued by childhood training, religious indoctrination, or puritanical culture.
Thus, the Cyrenaic hedonist argues, it makes sense to advise people that
they ought to do what they are by nature meant to do: be happy at all costs
(page 184).
To obtain happiness, according to Epicurean Hedonism, one must
have knowledge, friendship, and live a virtuous and temperate life

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(handout 7). Epicurus, who was very involved in human rights and the
teacher of this philosophy, opened his own school, The Garden, which was
extremely radical at the time. Because Epicurus believed that knowledge
was a key to happiness, he invited all, including women, prostitutes, the
wealthy, and slaves to be educated. The Garden was one of the only places
in Greece where men and women were treated as equalsan extremely rare
experience at that time. While at the Garden, Epicurus taught that only the
quality of our pleasures or pains is important (page 185). This statement
completely contrasts what Aristippus said in that only quantity or intensity of
pleasure is important. While he taught this, he also believed that not all
pleasures are good or desirable. Rather than seek to have the most of
anything, including the longest possible lifespan, the wise and sophisticated
chose to have the finest (page 185). Even though Epicurus believed that the
highest pleasures, ultimately leading to happiness, were knowledge,
friendship, and a virtuous life, many followers of Epicurean Hedonism
believed that the lavish and luxurious things in life is what brought
happiness. The pleasant life is not the product of one drinking party after
another or of sexual intercourse with women and boys or of the seafood and
other delicacies afforded by a luxurious table. On the contrary, it is the result
of sober thinking (page 186).
Cyrenaic Hedonism and Epicurean Hedonism are ultimately different
when it comes down to quality over quantity. As a Cyrenaic hedonist, one is
not concerned about the quality of their pleasures, but rather the quantity.

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And for Epicurean Hedonism, one is concerned for the quality of their
pleasures, rather than the quantity. Ultimately, this is the main difference
between the two hedonistic beliefs. Even though theres a contrast of quality
over quantity, its definite to say that both branches of Hedonism searched
for happiness, and I hope and believe they found it through their beliefs.
Cynicism was a philosophic school founded by Antisthenes who
modeled Cynicism after Socratesa philosopher he greatly admired.
Cynicism is the belief that the essence of civilization is corrupt and that it
destroys individuals. It is a much different philosophy when compared to
Hedonism, in fact, its basically the opposite of Hedonism. Happiness for a
Cynic, the word coming from the word dog later given to Diogenes because
he lived like one, came from the absence of material possessions and it was
found through training and living in a way which was natural for themselves,
rejecting all conventional desires (handout 7), while happiness for the
Hedonist came from material possessions and pleasurable physical
experiences. Not only are Cynicism and Hedonism extreme opposites, but
Cynics reviled at the Hedonists. They were completely disgusted by their
chosen lifestyle. The Cynics said that we must reject social norms and
completely rely on ourselves. If one rejects social norms, they are completely
independent and deny the need to conform to society, which is exactly what
a Cynic does. Diogenes, the dog who lived in a wine barrel on the beach,
scrounged for food, never bathed, and refused to follow the social norms for
dress and behavior, is a prime example of one who lived his life in harmony

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with Cynicism. He once said, When I saw a child drinking from his hand, I
threw away my cup. (page 187) The cup was a luxury for Diogenes, and he
didnt need it. While the rest of Greece was living a lavish and luxurious
lifestyle, the Cynics rejected this social norm and lived simple livesthe
only way to happiness. However, if everyone was living in abandoned wine
barrels, like Diogenes, that would be the social norm, so would Cynics now be
forced to live lavish lifestyles? If we go by the definition of Cynicism, the
answer would be yes.
While attending the University of Arkansas, I took a class at 7:30 am (I
dont know why I thought this was a good idea). I woke up one morning at
my usual 6:00 am and hopped in the showerit was coldgreat. After
surviving the, basically, Antarctic water via my shower head, I walked out to
my kitchen to cook myself breakfast only to find that my roommate forgot to
buy eggs and all I had was cold cereal and waterstupid roommate. After
my delicious bowl of watered down Honey Nut Cheerios, literally, I walked
out to my car, started the engine, and began driving down MLK only to find
that an airplane (I kid you not) had made an emergency landing right on my
route to school. And to think this morning couldnt get any worse. After
taking an alternate route, and already being 10 minutes late to class, I
parked my car, and began walking as fast as I could up the hill to Old Main,
walk through the doors, up the two flights of stairs, to room 203, where my
teacher had posted (not emailed) that class was cancelled that day. I swear I
couldnt have been more upset on my way to school due to my environment

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that I could not control, and even initially looking at that sheet of paper I was
furious because I could have slept in, I decided to make the best of the rest
of my day and go get breakfast at my favorite bakery, Little Bread Company.
While that story seems a little farfetched, it did happen. Not all in the
same day, but I combined them together to make my day seem a bit worse
than it actually was. I am able to relate this story to the philosophy of the
Stoics, those who practice Stoicism which is the philosophy that counsels
self-control, detachment, and acceptance of ones fate as identified by the
objective use of reason (page 181). Briefly, their notion of morality is stern,
involving a life in accordance with nature and controlled by virtue. It is an
ascetic system, teaching perfect indifference (apathea) to everything
external, for nothing external could be either good or evil. Hence to the
Stoics both pain and pleasure, poverty and riches, sickness and health, were
supposed to be equally unimportant. (http://www.iep.utm.edu/stoicism/) In
short, Stoics believe that one must accept their fate, be happy with what one
can control because happiness comes when one detaches from all
externals (handout 7). Stoicism surfaced as a philosophy in reaction to
Hedonist beliefs that pleasure is always good and pain is always evil.
Stoics, rather than seeking for pleasure, seek for peace of mind through selfdiscipline, they believe nothing can make you happy or unhappy without
your consent (page 181). While Stoics believe that they are in control of
themselves, however Logos, or god, or a higher power, is in control of the
events that happen to you. So, with the example I gave, despite the horrible

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morning I had had, and even though I was upset by the occurrences I
couldnt controlcreated by LogosI made the best out of my day because I
was in control of my actions.
Hedonism, Cynicism, and Stoicism are all completely different
teachings of philosophy and their definitions and ways to happiness are
completely different. However, whichever path is taken in regards to
happiness, I hope you get there.