Outlines of a Critical Theory of Ethics — John Shaqi
Outlines of a Critical Theory of EthicsDewey, John
Philosophy
Outlines of a Critical Theory of Ethics
Dewey, John
Ethics
For a strong statement of this doctrine see Mill, Op. cit.,
pp. 354-5. "Desiring a thing and finding it pleasant,
aversion to it and thinking of it as painful, are phenomena
entirely inseparable, or rather two parts of the same
phenomenon,--in strictness of language, two different
modes of naming the same psychological fact; to think of
an object as desirable and to think of it as pleasant are
one and the same thing." See also, Bain, Emotions and Will,
p. 436, Senses and Intellect, pp. 338-344; Sully, Outlines
of Psychology, p. 575, "The inclination or tendency of the
active mind towards what is pleasurable and away from what
is painful is the essential fact in willing." Also pp.
576-577.
XII. Criticism.
Pleasure Not the End of Impulse.
Taking up the points in reverse order, we shall endeavor to show
first, that the motive of action, in the sense of end aimed at, is not
pleasure. This point in itself, is, of course, rather psychological
than ethical. Taking up then the psychology of pleasure in its
connection with will, we shall discuss its relation to impulse, to
desire and to motive.
It is generally agreed that the raw material of volition is found
in some form or other of the impulsive or instinctive actions. Such
tendencies (_e. g._, the impulse for food, for drink, for unimpeded
motion) clearly precede the reaching of an end, and hence the
experience of any pleasure in the end. Our first actions, at least,
are not for pleasure; on the contrary, there is an activity for
some independent end, and this end being reached there is pleasure
in an act which has succeeded. This suggests as a possible principle
that pleasure is not so much the end of action, as an element in the
activity which reaches an end. What Aristotle says of another matter
is certainly true of instinctive action. "It is not true of every
characteristic function that its action is attended with pleasure,
_except indeed the pleasure of attaining its end_."
See Martineau, Types of Ethical Theory, Vol. II, pp.
299-300; Sidgwick, Op. cit., pp. 38-45.
XIII. Criticism--_Continued_.
Pleasure Not the End of Desire.
It may, however, be said that, while our instinctive actions have
another end than pleasure, this is not true of conscious desires--that,
indeed, just the difference between instinct and desire is that the
former goes blindly to its end, while the latter superimposes the
thought of the pleasure to be reached upon the mere instinct. So we
have to analyze the nature of desire.
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