Reference no: EM133356011

Case Study: The neglect of others' interests in favor of one's own interests is referred to as "ethical egoism." However, because it is frequently in one's self-interest to help others or refrain from injuring them, ethical egoism cannot be logically equated with selfishness. The motivation to help family and friends for an ethical egoist is one's personal connection to them and the distress that would be caused by their suffering or misfortune. For instance, Rand argues that it would be absurd to claim that a husband who spends a fortune to cure his wife of an illness does so entirely on her behalf. The idea that people should always act in their own best interests is known as ethical egoism. The word "ethical" here simply means that this type of egoism is prescribing a course of behavior, not that it is good or bad.True friendship requires acting frequently in the other person's best interests and expecting the same in return; true friends do not always act with only their own interests in mind.According to the ethical egoist, everyone should always pursue their own interests (definition of ethical egoism).Now, it's possible that those who support ethical egoism don't value genuine friendship. But it seems reasonable to say that even egoists desire genuine friendship and affection in their lives, if only because it will benefit them personally. We can now see the problem: if they want these things, they must occasionally act in the interests of others, which means they cannot be ethical egoists because ethical egoists believe that we should always act in our own best interests. We can form true ties with people when we behave in their best interests. These relationships are really helpful. But it's precisely through not viewing others as objects to be used for our own benefit that we obtain this use value. One of the common arguments against ethical egoism is that an egoist cannot have loving relationships. Even though the egoist occasionally demonstrates kindness or generosity, his ego prevents him from engaging in more fulfilling and intimate relationships. After all, isn't the egoist committed to constantly putting himself first? Therefore, he won't be able to care about others, or at least not in the way that a good friend would.
Since egoists can only value other people in an instrumental way, it is believed that they cannot be true friends or lovers.

Question: Do you have friends or acquaintances who act like ethical egoists? Does this present any special problems or issues in your relationship with them? Can an ethical egoist be a good friend? Why or why not?