Views of Ethics
Four leading ethical viewpoints will be presented and compared here:

1. The theory of rational egoism contends that a person's own life, interpreted in the broadest sense, should be his or her highest value. In other words, one should pursue one's rational self-interest. Because an individual's long-run self-interest can only be achieved through the use of reason, the qualifier "rational" is not strictly necessary. Hence we can call this theory simply egoism, and its ethical goal is simply self-interest.
2. Egotism (spelled with a "t") is the view that a person should pursue his or her desires without concern for the facts of the real world, including in particular the lives of others.
3. Hedonism is the theory that pleasure per se should always be one's highest value.
4. Altruism (from the root "altrui," meaning "others") contends that an individual should sacrifice his or her interest for the supposed benefit of others—e. g., for "society," "the common good," or "the less fortunate."     

---

Previous