Similarities between Ataraxia and Nihilism.: Philosophy Forums

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Similarities between Ataraxia and Nihilism.

Bronze
Sexiest Nihilist Alive

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Posted 05/05/08 - 04:08 PM: Subject: Similarities between Ataraxia and Nihilism.	#1
Ataraxia, the psychological inability to value or rationalize material emotion or care. I'll use wikipedia's example: "A simple example of this would be a child deciding whether of not to do his homework. A 'normal' child would be able to understand and sum up the situation with the statement "If I don't do my homework, I will get in trouble. If I get in trouble, I will be sad. Therefore, if I don't do my homework, I will be sad." However, an ataraxic child, while able to understand the concept of this statement, would be unable to make the emotional connection between not doing his homework and feeling sad." Nihilism, while it may be argued and ambiguous in meaning, I think most of us agree that it's the belief that there is no absolute truth, no absolute morallity, etc. Nihilism is often used to describe someone who who lacks care and emotion towards life, drawing obvious similarities to ataraxia. I think both nihilism and ataraxia come from the same concept. When someone cannot think of a rational reason to 'value' something(or anything). Maybe everything I just said is redundant and self-evident, perhaps no one even disagrees with me. Just thought I 'd put it out there though, maybe I'm mistaken.
Why is the word 'dictionary' in the dictionary? If you need to know how to spell it, the word is right on the cover, if you need to know what the definition of 'dictionary' is, you wouldn't exactly know to look in a dictionary would you?

Philonus
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Posted 05/05/08 - 05:37 PM:	#2
The distinction that we must first make is that Nihilism is a philosophical assertion that there is no truth, Ataraxia is a psychological/sociological problem in which a person is unable to interpret on the basis of emotional attachments. Just because someone lacks emotional attachment and basic values does not necessarily entail that he is a nihilist. Nihilism is the assertion that there is no truth, it did not specify any emotional characteristic as the requirement to characterize truth so therefore to label a person suffering from Ataraxia as a nihilist does not follow. To associate Nihilism with Ataraxia is not only inconsistent but it is also limited: Stoicism, Buddhism, Egoism, and Kantian ethics may as well be similar to Ataraxis since most of these philosophies do not encourage emotional attachments or reaction to situations. Buddhism teaches dettachment, Stoicism teaches accepting events that occur (the person with Ataraxia may be a good stoic in that he will not have a hard time accepting traumatic events), Kantian ethics teaches to act morally out of duty which does not require emotions (such as compassion), and Egoism may have argued the virtue of selfishness rather than love and care. These philosophies are better associated with Ataraxia than Nihilism, although they may not perfectly fit with it. Emotional attachment may imply value, but this is not necessarily true since I listed philosophies that may disagree with that proposition. Therefore I think that Nihilism does not necessarily fit in with Ataraxia since it did not necessarily say that Truth and Emotions are equated.

Bronze
Sexiest Nihilist Alive

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Posted 05/06/08 - 11:58 AM:	#3
Philonus wrote: The distinction that we must first make is that Nihilism is a philosophical assertion that there is no truth, Ataraxia is a psychological/sociological problem in which a person is unable to interpret on the basis of emotional attachments. Just because someone lacks emotional attachment and basic values does not necessarily entail that he is a nihilist. I didn't say they were exactly synonymous, I realize there is a distinction. Nihilism is the assertion that there is no truth That's one interperetation of it. It's a shallow, laymans way of putting it though. , it did not specify any emotional characteristic as the requirement to characterize truth so therefore to label a person suffering from Ataraxia as a nihilist does not follow. I'm not saying ataraxia = nihilism, I'm saying they come from a similar source or principal. To associate Nihilism with Ataraxia is not only inconsistent but it is also limited: Stoicism, Buddhism, Egoism, and Kantian ethics may as well be similar to Ataraxis since most of these philosophies do not encourage emotional attachments or reaction to situations. Buddhism teaches dettachment, Stoicism teaches accepting events that occur (the person with Ataraxia may be a good stoic in that he will not have a hard time accepting traumatic events), Kantian ethics teaches to act morally out of duty which does not require emotions (such as compassion), and Egoism may have argued the virtue of selfishness rather than love and care. These philosophies are better associated with Ataraxia than Nihilism, although they may not perfectly fit with it. You are also giving a limited definition. You forget to mention that ataraxia is material emotional dettachment, not any and all emotional dettatchment. And nihilism isn't purely "there is no truth", another common definition is the nihilism that opposes existential assertion that there is a point/reason to live, where-as a nihilist would say there is no point or reason to live. Both this type of 'nihilism' and ataraxia are material devaluement. Emotional attachment may imply value, but this is not necessarily true since I listed philosophies that may disagree with that proposition. Therefore I think that Nihilism does not necessarily fit in with Ataraxia since it did not necessarily say that Truth and Emotions are equated. Ataraxia isn't some sub-conscious mental disease, it's still a concious condition, ataraxics cannot justify logically why one should attatch emotions to physical events, they are 'emotional skeptics' much in the same way nihilists are existential skeptics.
Why is the word 'dictionary' in the dictionary? If you need to know how to spell it, the word is right on the cover, if you need to know what the definition of 'dictionary' is, you wouldn't exactly know to look in a dictionary would you?

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