What is Egoism?

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I hope you’re all keeping well 🙂

In Philosophy, ‘Egoism’ is the ethical theory that one’s self is, or should be, the motivation and the ultimate goal of one’s own actions in life. We’re going to be exploring this a little further in today’s blog, breaking down the different versions of egoism and the impact that each one creates on how you make decisions.

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Over the last couple of months, I have loved delving into the world of ethics and philosophy here on the page, exploring concepts such as Utilitarianism, Virtue Ethics, John Broome’s Theory of Fairness and more.

Each of these theories has its own approach and determining factor when it comes to the decisions that we make each day in our lives. Some of them will tell us that the most ‘ethical’ thing to do is to choose the act which leads to the most overall utility, while others will direct us towards what the ‘fairest’ option would be – however, where does our own self-interest fit in here?

That’s where the concept of egoism comes into play, which is split into two positions, descriptive (describes the thought process and actions that one undertakes) and normative (a branch of ethics concerned with what we see as right or wrong), with its three different variations – Psychological Egoism, Ethical Egoism and Rational Egoism.

Psychological egoism, the most famous descriptive position, claims that each person has but one ultimate aim: their own welfare. People who follow the theory of psychological egoism eliminate the possibility for any of their actions to be labelled as ‘altruistic’ or ‘charitable’, as all of their actions are taken with the sole intention of their own benefit, whether that is in the short or long term.
Ethical egoism is the theory that, in all cases of moral decision-making, people should be guided entirely by their own self-interest. Ethical egoism states that actions whose consequences will benefit the decision-maker are ethical.
Rational egoism is the standpoint in which an action is only deemed rational if and only if it benefits one’s self-interest. If an action does not have an overall positive impact on the moral agent, then it is seen as an irrational course of action for them to undertake.

Egoism is a highly debated area of philosophy, with many arguments being made for and against it. Whether you believe that all actions are guided by the end goal of one’s self-interest or you believe in something entirely different, there are no right or wrong answers. In my opinion, you have the right to believe whichever philosophical approach or theory you choose, as long as you can justify your position and can appreciate that others may view the scenario differently to how you do.

So, there we have it, this has been a summary of my interpretation of the ethical/moral concept of Egoism. What do you think of today’s blog? What do you think of the concept of egoism? Are there any philosophical theories or beliefs that you would like to see me explore on the page going forward?

Be sure to let me know your thoughts and answers to the above questions 🙂

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a lovely day!