Hedonism refers to the ethical theory that pleasure is the purpose and aim of human life. Therefore, hedonists always strive to experience total pleasure and believe that pleasure is the only good in life and pain is the only evil hence the ultimate goal is to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. Nevertheless, many may argue that one deserves ultimate pleasure in life and be happy and have many valid reasons to validate their claims. Still, a hedonistic life can be a significant obstacle to identifying one their purpose in life. This thesis tries to explain how an elephant’s hedonistic life of luxury is tiring and prevents it from attaining its purpose.
Elephants are arguably the strongest animals in the jungle due to their vast physique and strength that other animals fail to possess. Despite this, they are ruled by the lions of the cat family, which tend to have less power, but due to their bold nature, the lion is the king of the jungle. The elephant is a pleasure seeker and values enjoyment before anything else. Therefore, it becomes inherent to pursue pleasure and fun at all times. One evident behavior of the elephant is always eating; most of its time is spent feeding. Although it is necessary to provide to meet its colossal body’s energy requirements, the elephant is a messy feeder since they uproot and scatter most of its food. It shows the lack of preservation and the need to satisfy the urge of enjoyment in seeing how it is all powerful that it can uproot even trees without minding what it will eat tomorrow. This is a reckless habit that is exhausting. With an average consumption of 450 kg of food, this creature gets a lot of energy that has nowhere to utilize and ends up being wasteful and destructive. Such a point is enough for a single elephant to dismantle a pride of lions in pursuit of jungle power and prowess.
Elephants have one of the thickest hides, which protects them from physical harm. But to their hedonistic nature, pain is perceived as the only evil thing, and they have the greatest fear of bees. Bees are tiny insects compared to elephants, the largest dry land animals but most feared by elephants. The former is so terrified of a small insect that it will flap its gigantic ears rigorously, stir up dust and make noises when it hears the buzz of a bee hive. Why this kind of reaction when even a bee sting is harmless and unpenetrable to its thick and hard hide? The sole purpose is to eliminate any pain and discomfort even when no imminent danger is facing it. Hedonists try their best to minimize the pain of any form since it is the only evil that faces them, whereas other dire issues and grave matters need their undivided attention to solve. Such a lifestyle is tiresome and not meaningful in that you are scared of petty and harmless things and only want to be happy. Such characters may experience a lot of hardships in working toward their goals since they cannot withstand the challenges accompanied by their quest for their dreams.
With the never-ending urge to pursue happiness and enjoyment, it becomes impossible for any tangible or substantial achievements to be attained. One is risk averse since risks tend to cause discomfort, which is viewed as conflicting with the sole purpose of finding happiness and pleasure. Also, hedonists tend to avoid compromising situations where to get something great, and you will have to sacrifice your pleasure-seeking time and that thing that tends to give you pleasure. As a result, one ends up staying in their comfort zones and their full potential unutilized. It is accompanied by a low quality of life and very awkward behavioral patterns. The quest for pleasure never ends since a new desire is born out of the satisfaction of a previous one, and the cycle continues. It is monotonous since the same things are done repeatedly to give the same already experienced outcome. It becomes a tiresome and boring lifestyle for some, especially those who like taking on life challenges to mark life milestones and progress without hesitation. Hence, Hedonism becomes an unwanted luxury that seems attractive and lucrative but is a significant hindrance to self-actualization and goal realization.
0It can also be viewed that with such a considerable amount of energy, the elephants can be the shields of the weak herbivores since they are of their kind. With massive food consumption, there tends to be an ample supply of energy used in less constructive ways rather than wasted on plays for fun. Some elephants have also been reported to have brutally murdered some rhinoceroses in surplus for their sake. According to (Patricia Greene Animals that kill for fun 2022), the elephants did not kill to eat the rhinos but murdered them. It affirms the destructive nature of some urges to pursue pleasure and the repercussions caused. If such a trait is adapted by the human folks who tend to do such bizarre deeds to satisfy their selfish quest for enjoyment, the world becomes mayhem. It shows that some individuals lack a moral compass, and nothing, even taking life, can deter them from getting their happiness and what pleases them. The less powerful or weak tend to be subjected to this tyranny of such hedonists. Some can protect the vulnerable, but they become the worst there is due to self-interest. It is then shrewd to say that Hedonism not only hinders individuals from realizing their purpose in life but also makes them tyrants if they are in power, and in their process of fulfilling these needs, they become oppressors.
In conclusion, Hedonism is a great hindrance to attaining self-actualization and reaching their full potential. It is also apparent that such a lifestyle is tiresome since some things are done repeatedly to bring enjoyment. Hedonism is also a great force that causes a lot of destruction, and individuals with such traits should train themselves on how to control the urges to fulfill these desires. Hedonism tends to stimulate luxury and comfort whereas suppressing hard work and sacrifice for the greater good. This thesis, therefore, is a true mirror reflection of today’s society that life, even if only lived once, should not be only about fun and enjoyment. Still, many other things should be given attention and worked on to improve the quality of our lives.
References
David M.W. & Ryan E.R. & Mark . T.C (2018) Psychological Hedonism, Hedonic motivation and health behavior. Oxford University Press.
Hadley, J. (2019). Relational Hedonism. In: Animal Neopragmatism. Palgrave Macmillan,Cham https//doi,org/10.1007/978-3-030-25980 -8 -4
Haider. S.W.& Shu .C. (2020) Moderating effect of Hedonism on store environment. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management 48 (5), 465-483.
Kate. S. (2020) Post-growth Living: For an alternative hedonism – books .google
Servaas, V.B. (2019) Aesthetic Hedonism and Its Critics Wiley Online Library. https://doi.org/10.1111/phc3.12645
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