Conception of Happiness
In the article "Two Conception of Happiness", Richard Kraut intends to discuss Aristotelian notion of happiness by distinguishing the difference concerning feeling happy and leading a happy life. The act of an individual having certain feelings explores their internal identity and the only person that can really understand his true feelings is that person himself. The conceptions of feeling happy and leading a happy life can be easily mistaken because they both deal with an individual's state of happiness. Feeling happy represents an individual's recognition of reality as in fact being an illusion. While leading a happy life signifies the high standards a person entails in order to be happy.There are some differences in Aristotle's conception of happiness when compared with a subjective theory of happiness. It is granted that Aristotelian conception of happiness and the subjective theory of happiness say that everyone has certain standards to fulfill throughout their lives and as a result, these individuals attempt to reach those goals in order to li
The "Extreme Subjectivism" says that the deceived boy felt happy not knowing that he is living an illusion, but he is still not leading a happy life because he is being deceived. The "Extreme Subjectivism" states that "happiness is a psychological state and nothing more" (227) which ultimately says that even if reality is an illusion the person involved in the scenario cannot deny his feeling of being happy at the time. Suppose that his friends actually did deceit him, but the young boy is unaware of these actions and still thinks that he is leading a happy life because his standards are met. The young boy states that his idea of happiness is being "respected by his friends" and that he would hate to have friends who deceit him. Since happiness is psychological, the young boy who was deceived cannot deny his happiness because he was still happy even before the deceit took place. A person cannot deny their state of happiness even if the reality was an illusion and the standards are not met. Aristotle argues that just because a person has met his values in life does not mean that they are actually leading a happy life. Kraut does not agree with the Extreme Subjectivism" that the person who was deceived is leading a happy life. The "Extreme Subjectivism" argues that the young boy still can feel happy even if he was aware of his "false friends". In reality everyone knows that having "false friends" would certainly make them unhappy, just as the young boy would be if he was aware of the fact that his friends are false. The subjectivists oppose to Aristotle's conception of happiness by stating that people do not have to live the best life in order to be happy even if an individual reaches his standards that he inflicts on his life. In the article, Kraut explain what "Extreme Subjectivism" means by stating that one can still feel and lead a happy life even if they are not sure of the reality in their lives. According to Aristotle, an individual must seek "justice, courage, and self control" before they can reach eudaimonia which it simply means living the best life an individual is capable of.
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