Epicurus · Philosophy

Pleasure, Rightly Understood

Epicurus’ much-misunderstood ethics: pleasure is indeed the highest good, but the greatest pleasure is not indulgence - it is <em>ataraxia</em> (freedom from mental disturbance) and <em>aponia</em> (freedom from bodily pain), a serene state reached by limiting desire, not multiplying it.

What you'll be able to recall

You learned that Epicurus held pleasure to be the highest good - but that the greatest pleasure is ataraxia (peace of mind) and aponia (freedom from bodily pain), a stable serenity reached by limiting desires to what is natural and necessary, not by piling up luxuries. Explain Epicurus’ true hedonism in your own words.

Leads to Jeremy Bentham.

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