A theory of wellbeing contributes to explaining whether this or that state of affairs is a benefit or harm to a particular subject. A natural starting point from which to build such a theory is the subject’s valenced attitudes: I benefit from occurrences I like, » …Read more
Author: Nicole Hassoun
There is surprisingly little discussion about pain’s badness in the philosophical literature. One might think that it falls naturally out of any of the various theories of well-being, » …Read more
Think of the most recent remarkable experience you’ve had. Perhaps it was reading an engrossing novel that opened your eyes to a new depth of poverty, » …Read more
Steve Wall and I have been thinking together about what the best theory of well-being that claims that loving the (prudentially) good is itself (prudentially) good would look like. » …Read more
What do we owe to others as a basic minimum? Having such an account may inform theories of global justice, basic needs, or human rights (see, » …Read more
Think about Belle from Beauty and the Beast. She is a smart, ambitious, independent young woman who trades her freedom for her father’s and over time comes to love the inconsiderate, » …Read more
Most contemporary work on well-being assumes that individuals have several different kinds of well-being:
- Momentary well-being—i.e., well-being at a particular point in time.
Consider a father who looks at his beloved daughter and thinks, ‘What I want most in life is just for you to be happy.’ In thinking this thought, » …Read more