Masters Thesis

Hedonism and the subject's priority in welfare theory

Welfare theory is concerned with prudential value, or the value that something has for a particular individual; it can be divided into two principal categories: subjective versus objective. Roughly, subjective theories prioritize the experience of the subject, while objective list theories do not. In this paper I argue, first, that for something to be of value to an individual's well-being, it must enter into his experience. Thus, a theory of welfare should be subjective, and the experience of the subject should be prioritized and maintained throughout. Second, I propose that because Hedonism naturally represents the view that well-being is a quality of experience, it serves as an appropriate place from which to build a theory of well-being. Third, I defend Hedonism against the three classical objections that have been taken to falsify it: The Heterogeneity objection, The Philosophy of swine, and The Experience Machine Experiment. And this to show that these objections are problematic, and that Hedonism has been unfairly dismissed.

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