Deck 2: Is Happiness All That Matters

Question 1

Describe the paradox of hedonism, and explain why it is often taken to be a problem for the theory. What do you think is the best response that the hedonist can give to the problem? Is this response adequate?

Answer 1

No Answer.

Question 2

Does having true beliefs sometimes make a life go better, even if it doesn't make one any happier? If so, give an example in which you think this is the case. If not, explain why not. Does the fact that we're sometimes unhappy when we find out we had false beliefs show that having false beliefs is sometimes intrinsically bad for us? Why or why not?

Answer 2

No Answer.

Question 3

Suppose you had the opportunity to have someone else make all of your decisions for you for the rest of your life. Suppose further that this person knows you so incredibly well that her decisions are guaranteed to make you happier in the long term than you would be if you made your own decisions. Would you accept such an arrangement? Why or why not? What does this case tell us about the plausibility of hedonism?

Answer 3

No Answer.

Question 4

Some lives begin in misery and end in success and happiness, whereas others have exactly the opposite trajectory. Write an essay about the "life's trajectory" objection to hedonism. What is the problem for hedonism supposed to be exactly? How do you think a hedonist would respond to this problem?

Question 5

Write an essay developing what you take to be the strongest argument against hedonism. What do you think is the best reply that the hedonist can give to this argument? Do you find the argument convincing? Defend your answer.

Question 6

Write an essay developing what you take to be the strongest version of hedonism. Be sure to explain how this version of hedonism grapples with the most serious objections raised in this chapter. Ultimately, do you think that your version of hedonism is correct? Defend your response.

Question 7

The paradox of hedonism states that

A) the happier you are, the happier you make those around you.
B) directly seeking happiness is often self-defeating.
C) it is impossible to be both morally good and happy at the same time.
D) many people who achieve all their goals remain unhappy.

Question 8

If it's true that single-mindedly pursuing happiness makes you less happy, then

A) hedonism is false.
B) hedonism is false for you.
C) hedonism says single-mindedly pursuing happiness is good for you anyway.
D) hedonism says single-mindedly pursuing happiness is not good for you.

Question 9

If hedonism is true, then the enjoyment a serial killer derives from committing her crimes is

A) good for her.
B) bad for her.
C) Both of the above
D) None of the above

Question 10

According to the argument from evil pleasures

A) hedonism implies that happiness that comes from evil deeds is good.
B) happiness that comes from evil deeds is not as good as happiness that comes from good deeds.
C) hedonism is false.
D) All of the above

Question 11

According to hedonism, what is the relationship between well-being and moral goodness?

A) You can increase your well-being only by being morally good.
B) You can be morally good only by increasing your well-being.
C) You can be morally good only by increasing others' well-being.
D) None of the above

Question 12

If hedonism is true, then our lives go well to the extent that we are

A) happy.
B) uncoerced.
C) autonomous.
D) Both b and c

Question 13

Hedonism is committed to which of the following?

A) Happiness makes us less well-off when it comes from immoral action.
B) Happiness is happiness, regardless of its source.
C) Happiness is more valuable when it is not based on false beliefs.
D) Happiness loses its value when it detracts from autonomy.

Question 14

Autonomy is

A) the ability to control others' lives.
B) the power to guide our life through our own free choices.
C) the ability of our subconscious to affect our behavior.
D) the power that robots have to operate according to a set of commands.

Question 15

The experience machine thought experiment is supposed to show that happiness is less valuable if it is based on

A) immorality.
B) selfishness.
C) false beliefs.
D) trivial hobbies.

Question 16

According to hedonism, a pleasant life of illusion is _______ an equally pleasant life based on real achievement and true beliefs

A) less good for you than
B) better for you than
C) equally good as
D) sometimes less good, sometimes better than

Question 17

The value of autonomy explains why paternalism is

A) always justified.
B) never justified.
C) always objectionable, even when it is justified.
D) always praiseworthy, even when it is not justified.

Question 18

According to the text, the problem with the paradox of hedonism argument is that

A) it is invalid.
B) it is questionable whether hedonism implies that it is rational to directly pursue happiness.
C) it is questionable whether directly pursuing happiness is rational.
D) None of the above

Question 19

According to hedonism, happiness is

A) always more valuable at the beginning of one's life.
B) always more valuable at the end of one's life.
C) equally valuable at all times in one's life.
D) more or less valuable at different times depending on the "trajectory" of one's life.

Question 20

If happiness always makes us better off, then hedonism

A) must be true.
B) must be false.
C) might be true, but only if other things make us better off as well.
D) might still be false if other things make us better off as well.

Question 21

If people can sometimes be unhappy because something bad has happened to them, then

A) hedonism is true.
B) hedonism is false.
C) hedonism might be true, but only if people are never unhappy for any other reason.
D) None of the above

Question 22

What is the paradox of hedonism?

A) Those who try very hard to make themselves happy almost never succeed.
B) The less you care about material things like wealth and status, the happier you will be.
C) The more you make other people happy, the happier you will be.
D) All of the above

Question 23

According to the text, which of the following problems do hedonists have good replies to?

A) The paradox of hedonism
B) The worry about evil pleasures
C) The importance of autonomy
D) Both a and b

Question 24

The Argument from False Happiness concludes that

A) hedonism is true.
B) false happiness is as good as true happiness.
C) hedonism is false.
D) None of the above

Question 25

What is the "experience machine" thought experiment supposed to show?

A) The dangers of technology to our well-being
B) The value of autonomy
C) The value of being in contact with reality
D) The way in which selfishness can detract from well-being

Question 26

What is lacking in the lives of people in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World?

A) Happiness
B) The satisfaction of their desires
C) Autonomy
D) Physical pleasure

Question 27

What is paternalism?

A) Limiting someone's liberty against her will for her own good
B) Limiting someone's liberty against her will for your own good
C) Giving parental advice to someone and letting her make up her own mind
D) Treating someone biologically unrelated like one's own child

Question 28

Which kind of life do hedonists claim is best?

A) A life that begins in misery and ends with many happy years
B) A life that begins with many happy years and ends in misery
C) A life that is moderately happy from start to finish
D) All of these lives could be equally good according to hedonism.

Question 29

Which of the following claims is part of the argument from multiple harms against hedonism?

A) According to hedonism, things can harm you even if they don't make you unhappy.
B) Things cannot harm you unless they make you unhappy.
C) According to hedonism, you can be harmed by something only because it saddens you.
D) None of the above

Question 30

Which of the following claims is not true?

A) If hedonism is true, the only thing intrinsically good for people is happiness.
B) If hedonism is false, happiness is not intrinsically good for people.
C) If happiness is not intrinsically good for people, then hedonism is false.
D) Even if hedonism is true, many things may be instrumentally good for people.