Page "Ethical egoism" Paragraph 15

Philosopher Max Stirner, in his book The Ego and Its Own, was the first philosopher to call himself an egoist, though his writing makes clear that he desired not a new idea of morality ( ethical egoism ), but rather a rejection of morality ( amoralism ), as a nonexistent and limiting “ spook ”; for this, Stirner has been described as the first individualist anarchist.

Other philosophers, such as Thomas Hobbes and David Gauthier, have argued that the conflicts which arise when people each pursue their own ends can be resolved for the best of each individual only if they all voluntarily forgo some of their aims — that is, one's self-interest is often best pursued by allowing others to pursue their self-interest as well so that liberty is equal among individuals.

Sacrificing one's short-term self-interest to maximize one's long-term self-interest is one form of " rational self-interest " which is the idea behind most philosophers ' advocacy of ethical egoism.

Egoists have also argued that one's actual interests are not immediately obvious, and that the pursuit of self-interest involves more than merely the acquisition of some good, but the maximizing of one's chances of survival and / or happiness.