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It's true that desires aren't justified by reason in and of themselves, but I don't think that's ultimately relevant (morally or otherwise). It's an empirical f
by ibeckermayer 7y ago
It's true that desires aren't justified by reason in and of themselves, but I don't think that's ultimately relevant (morally or otherwise). It's an empirical fact that we must act on our desires; when I examine my actions closely I notice that all of them can be traced back to some desire or combination of desires. From that empirically derived fact I posit that we can say the question "can reason alone justify the pursuit of our desires?" is a non-sensical question, like asking "is gravity justified in making objects fall to earth?"
I think a valid question along this line of inquiry is "are the actions I am taking in pursuit of my desires justified?". Actions are embodiments of ideas about how to act, and like other ideas can be deemed justified or unjustified through rational analysis. If an action embodies an idea that contradicts a known truth, it can be deemed unjustified.
- adrianratnapala 7y ago> It's an empirical fact that we must act on our desires; Is it? > when I examine my actions closely I notice that all of them can be traced back to some desire or combination of desires. But when I introspect, the opposite happens. When I examine my desires closely, they disappear and I am left with "well I often engage in X, Y and Z goal-seeking behaviours."
- sooheon 7y agoIf you grant that motivation for actions have two components, causal and stochastic, and ignore the stochastic element as just error, I could see labeling all causal impetuses as "desires" at some level. Anything you do, you do because the conscious you--or some lower level process that is a part of you--"wanted" it that way, give or take some random noise.
- n4r9 7y agoIndeed, a desire is ultimately the habit of seeking a particular goal. The comment you replied to stands regardless.
- ibeckermayer 7y agoDon't “goal-seeking behaviors” imply desire? I can’t imagine a goal I might seek that isn’t a desire itself or connected closely to a desire.