Notes on: The Four Idols

'The Four Idols' is taken from the course 'Managing Happiness,' by Arthur Brooks on edX.org.

Relationship to Money, Power, Pleasure, and Fame

In the 12th and 13th centuries, several influential philosophers expressed their views on what is means to be happy and live a good life and in his book, 'Summa Theologiae,' Thomas Aquinas proposes that all human action is a means to an end and the ultimate end for every human is happiness. He goes on to warn us that in our pursuit of happiness, there are four things that can divert us: money, power, pleasure and fame.

Aquinas believed that although these things may seem to make people happy, there is always more: more money; more power; more pleasure and more fame, than we never really become satisfied and pursuing these things can become more frustrating than pleasurable.

They are referred to by Aquinas as idols, because they have the power to distort our judgement and create an illusion that is not real.

Everyone faces these idols throughout life and we must learn to recognise and control them.

“I stand now at the place where the road forks. One branch leads to material comfort, the flesh-pots; but it seems a kind of selling of one's soul.” - William James

Both James and Aquinas understood that pursuing money, power, pleasure, and fame will lead us astray from happiness and the solution is to be aware and not worship these false idols.