Abstract

What is the role of pleasure in determining a person’s lifetime well-being (i.e., how good his life was for him considered as a whole)? I will start by considering the nature of pleasure (i.e., what pleasure is). I will then consider what factors, if any, can affect how much a given pleasure adds to a person’s lifetime well-being other than its degree of pleasurableness (i.e., how pleasurable it is). Finally, I will consider whether it is plausible that there is any other way to add to somebody’s lifetime well-being than by giving him some pleasure or helping him to avoid some pain.