The pursuit of pleasure, desire, and joy has been a crucial part of human life since ancient times. It is an essential element that helps people find meaning and purpose in their existence.
This subject has been traditionally considered taboo and repressed in many societies, including those that criminalize homosexuality and transgenderism. This essay will explore how philosophical frameworks can help unpack these themes in LGBTQ+ communities. The pursuit of pleasure, desire, and joy have been integral to human beings since ancient times. These concepts are found in various works, such as Homer's Odyssey, Plato's Symposium, Aristophanes' Clouds, and the Bible.
In the Old Testament, God created man in His image and likeness, making them male and female. Adam had no sexual relations with Eve until they were married. In addition, women are often portrayed as seductive temptresses who lure men into sinful behavior.
There was a pervasive view that women should be submissive to their husbands and fathers.
During the Renaissance, Descartes developed a theory based on the idea that humans are rational creatures who seek happiness through thought and action. He argued that pleasure results from thinking about moral actions and doing them well. Similarly, Hobbes believed that all humans seek self-preservation and pleasure.
Locke asserted that individuals had natural rights derived from nature and society, which included property ownership and liberty. Kant claimed that reason governs all human activities while Hume suggested that pleasure arises from experience. In his work, David Hume explained why people enjoy reading novels or watching movies by proposing that humans need variety for pleasure.
In modern philosophy, Nietzsche posited that life is a struggle between good and evil forces, where the strongest will prevail over the weak. He also argued that humanity needs an aristocracy of intellectuals to rule it. Marx saw capitalism as alienating workers from themselves because it encouraged them to produce goods for money instead of fulfillment. Freud argued that repressed desires could lead to neurosis or psychosis if not expressed correctly.
Heidegger stated that human existence involves Being-in-the-world (Dasein) with other entities in a shared reality called "beings-with." Accordingly, each individual has unique experiences shaped by culture, family, community, environment, etc., leading to distinct perspectives on sex, sexuality, eroticism, intimacy, and relationships.
Contemporary philosophers have explored these concepts further by focusing on specific LGBTQ+ identities. Butler posits that gender performance is socially constructed based on cultural expectations, while Foucault examined power relations within institutions like marriage and family.
Haraway proposed a cyborg theory where bodies are hybrids composed of organic matter, technology, and social constructions. She argued that identity is fluid rather than fixed, challenging traditional binary ideas about masculinity/femininity, heterosexuality/homosexuality, male/female, etc. Similarly, Sartre claimed that individuals create their realities through choices made under external constraints such as society, culture, history, etc., which leads to freedom from oppression by embracing our differences without fear or shame. Moreover, Levinas insisted that ethical responsibility requires empathy toward others regardless of race, class, religion, etc., while Derrida stressed the importance of deconstructionism for understanding linguistic structures influencing perceptions of self and others.
These philosophies help illuminate how pleasure, desire, and joy can be pursued within LGBTQ+ contexts. While some may argue against their validity or relevance today, they provide valuable insight into human behavior across cultures and times. Therefore, it is crucial to explore them further to gain deeper understandings of ourselves and those around us.
What philosophical frameworks best illuminate the pursuit of pleasure, desire, and joy within LGBT contexts?
The concept of hedonism is one of the oldest and most influential theories in philosophy that explores the role of pleasure and its importance in human life. According to hedonistic theory, pleasure is the ultimate goal of all humans as it provides them with happiness and fulfillment. The hedonic calculus model developed by Jeremy Bentham suggests that pleasure can be calculated using two variables: intensity and duration.