The Pleasure Cure

There is an ongoing debate on whether or not pleasure is the same as happiness. Most say that it is not. People argue that happiness is a long-term affair while pleasure is a fleeting experience. Because of the belief that pleasure doesn’t last, it is not considered to be a true form of happiness.

Pleasure is seen as something momentary and indulgent and not conducive to helping people become “better individuals.” Hence, the happiness one feels when going on a rollercoaster, for example, is seen as less valuable than the happiness one feels when engaging in community service because it is believed that going on a roller-coaster ride does not make you a better person.

The problem lies in the assumption that momentary or fleeting feelings of pleasure are not meaningful or growth producing in of themselves. In other words, we assume that eating a piece of chocolate, for example, does not contribute to long-term happiness because it is not growth producing or meaningful. I argue that it is meaningful, as long as pleasure is constructed as meaningful.

We have good reason to think that engaging in pleasure is meaningful.  Research has found pleasure to be instrumental to our well-being.  Hence, its pursuit should be considered meaningful as well. It is simply a matter of thinking about pleasure in a different way. ^.What we consider to be meaningful is determined by society.  Activities can’t be meaningful unless somebody says that it is.  Pleasure can be a meaningful experience if we decide that it should be.  So, if one decides that the pursuit of pleasure is meaningful, then anything that gives us pleasure (including going on a roller-coaster ride) will be meaningful.

Possibly Related Posts:

• What Can Pleasure Do For You?
• HOW TO SURVIVE A RECESSION
• Desperate? Reach For Your Playlist
• Another Life Changing Habit
• How To Be Happy

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