Hedonism and the experience machine

Barber, Alex (2011). Hedonism and the experience machine. Philosophical Papers, 40(2) pp. 257–278.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/05568641.2011.591850

Abstract

Money isn’t everything, so what is? Many government leaders, social policy theorists, and members of the general public have a ready answer: happiness. This paper examines an opposing view due to Robert Nozick, which centres on his experience-machine thought experiment. Despite the example's influence among philosophers, the argument behind it is riddled with difficulties. Dropping the example allows us to re-version Nozick's argument in a way that makes it far more forceful - and less dependent on people's often divergent intutions about the experience machine.

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About

• Item ORO ID
• 29075
• Item Type
• Journal Item
• ISSN
• 0556-8641
• Keywords
• Robert Nozick, Experience Machine, Hedonism, Happiness
• Academic Unit or School
• Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS) > Social Sciences and Global Studies > Philosophy
  Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS) > Social Sciences and Global Studies
  Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS)
• Copyright Holders
• © 2011 The Editorial Board, Philosophical Papers
• Depositing User
• Alex Barber