egoism - Egoism describes a position in which the central...

Egoism describes a position in which the central aim of ones life is based on a
single core concept of considering his or her own personal welfare. A number of
different schools of thought react to this proposition in different ways, and slightly
different forms of egoism cater to different schools of thought to get around the fallacies
that they present. In a form of psychological egoism, a descriptive position, personal
welfare is at the forefront of the hierarchy of needs. Contrarily, a normative form of
egoism focuses more entirely on the ethical and moral ramifications of this case. In other
words, it makes a deeper focus on how justifiably right the actions of an individual are
rather than simply what those actions may be. Branched from that, then, are two other
theories. The first of ethical egoism believes that it is morally right for an action to
wholly fulfill an individual’s self interest. The second, rational egoism, claims that an
action is rational if it fulfills and individual’s self interest. The lines between these
different forms of egoism are blurry, but there are distinctions to be made. In addition,
several logical fallacies exist in each of the different forms. Likewise, sources of
different strength lie within each of the theories. Finally, it is important to emphasize the
psychological basis of self-interest and to contrast it with societal constructs of greed or
self-centeredness.
In the philosophy of ethical egoism, an action can be considered morally right if it
maximizes and individual’s self interest. Naturally, this is at odds with other moral
theories that place a greater emphasis on altruism. Under the philosophy of ethical
egoism, it would seem that an individual should not engage in any activity that represents
cost to the individual even if it results in great gain to another.