happiness and the human dilemma

• happiness: implies an active or passive feeling of what one considers good

  • “dictionary definition”

• Happiness (with a capital H): ultimate, complete, and total fulfillment

the human dilemma—consists of an assumption and two premises

• assumption: everyone desires happiness.

1. Happiness must be attainable

2. Happiness is seemingly impossible to find

• the way we respond to this moral dilemma reveals one’s moral vision

moral visions’ response to the human dilemma

• utilitarianism: affirming first premise and saying that people not acting like a utilitarian causes unhappiness

• natural law: both premises of the dilemma are correct to a degree.

  • one can be reasonably happy in this life by choosing higher goods, but fuller happiness is attained later with supreme good

• absurdism/nihilism: denies part 1 of the dilemma (happiness is not attainable)

• epicureanism: deny part 2 of the dilemma, and hold that happiness is possible to find

• hedonism: deny part 1 of the dilemma

• escapism: rejects premise 2, to a degree

• mortal relativism: one can affirm or deny either one of the dilemma premises, it’s up to the individual

catholic moral thought

“God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life.”

• happiness is the natural end (purpose) of the human life (possession of the Good)

  • that’s why we all seek it; we were made for it!

    • Happiness is the final cause of all humans

argument from desire (C.S. Lewis)

1. all human desires have something to satisfy them (food = hunger)

2. humans have a desire for infinite happiness

choosing higher goods over lesser goods

• creation is fundamentally good

  • evil comes from us rejecting higher goods for lesser ones

  • unhappiness is the natural result of this (not being in possession of the highest Good)

    • cut off from source of life = death

  • thankfully, this supreme good is not something impersonal or unknowable, but has a name and a face - Jesus Christ who reveals the Father’s love to us!