Is an Epicurean Lifestyle Achievable in Modern Times?

 For my final blogpost, I will be expanding upon my ideas about Epicureanism. Specifically, I’m going to discuss whether or not traditional Epicureanism is the key to happiness in modern society. Traditional Epicureanism refers to the concept happiness should be the ultimate life goal and that it can be achieved by living a modest lifestyle in order to limit superficial desires. Is this realistic today? Is it achievable? Would an Epicurean lifestyle be fulfilling for the average person in the 21st century? 

 

Epicureanism would’ve been a decently easy lifestyle to follow as late as 200 years ago. In a world with no advanced technology, internet, or modern problems, temptation would’ve been more minimal. Life was incredibly simple despite not having technology that supposedly makes our lives easier. Religion was also more prevalent and emphasized during this time period. Christian scripture encourages followers to live without fear and put trust into God, so atraxia and aponia may have been easier to reach during this time period. Those ideas were emphasized and made societal values because religion was a significant part of everyone’s lives. They may have been more likely to experience more frequent static pleasure as well because of this. Religion provides a sense of general satisfaction and fulfillment, which is a brief description of static pleasure. Although I’m grateful for the opportunities and freedom we have today, it must’ve been comforting to know that planning a life was significantly easier because there was only so many paths laid out for you to choose from. For example, if you came from a family of farmers, you were expected to follow in their footsteps and work for the family business. I feel that always having a general idea of what your future looks like would provide a sense of satisfaction and gratitude. Because religion was so emphasized, family and community naturally were extremely important as well. Epicureans also believe that a key to happiness is spending time with loved ones and doing acts of civility. People in less modern eras were more likely to gain happiness from this because helping others was taught from a young age and was considered a societal standard. Someone in this point in time would likely be fulfilled by an Epicurean lifestyle because the primary arguments of Epicureanism were already ingrained into their morals and day-to-day lives.  

However, the society we live in today is considerably more complex. In simple terms, we are able to pursue anything we please at any time we choose. Our society provides with endless options for careers, education, pleasure, and spending. There are more and more ways to indulge in unnecessary pleasures as time passes. The internet and modern technological advancements have significantly contributed to this as well. At every turn, we are constantly being bombarded with personally selected advertisements of products, websites, movies, and other distractions that pull us away from reality and isolate us from the people in our lives. Aimlessly spending money has now also become a trend. There are thousands of easily accessible online stores to browse, tens of thousands of shopping malls to walk through, and a strong desire to make needless purchases to “keep up” with those around us. This directly contridicts Epicurean teachings, which tell us to live modestly. Atraxia is also harder to reach to due to our increased freedom and access to the internet. With countless options on how to live our lives, we spend hours at a time battling with indecision, worry, and fear that we may be unable to achieve our dreams, or that we have made a regrettable lifestyle choice. More of anything is bound to create more problems. The media has also made it exponentially easier to access information of all kinds. Our societal issues are being non-stop broadcasted to consumers. While this can be beneficial, some content creators can also misuse this power to incite fear in others. Because this information is so accessible, it is almost impossible to avoid fearmongering media content. Media aside, many of our current societal issues regard the threats against minorities. It is difficult to avoid in conversation and day-to-day situations, and many people likely experience a lingering sense of fear for their safety and well-being. Epicurean values are more difficult to follow today because our society is technologically complex, socially divided, and isolating. People would rather indulge in trendy clothes, unnecessary vacations, and solitary screen time then moderate their spending and spend time with those around them. Our societal values no longer align as strongly with Epicureanism as they previously did. 

While Epicureanism in a modern world sounds refreshing, it is explicably harder to achieve as we continue to evolve into a world that seems to value technology and material items above all. Sadly, our values don’t align with its primary arguments as much as they used to. To achieve happiness today, I believe a balance between moderation and indulgence is key. We have to continue making connections with others and doing civil acts, but there is nothing wrong with treating ourselves to something new and exciting on occasion. 

Here are a few articles about Epicureanism that I found particularly interesting: 

https://www.themantle.com/philosophy/why-epicurus-matters-today 

https://www.verywellmind.com/epicurean-philosophy-and-happiness-4177914 

https://www.philosophytalk.org/blog/epicurus-and-good-life