Ambition, love, and happiness

Pettigrove, G. (2020) Ambition, love, and happiness. Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society, 120(1), pp. 21-45. (doi: 10.1093/arisoc/aoaa002)

Abstract

What is the relationship between ambition and love? While discussions of happiness often mention romances, friendships, aspirations, and achievements, the relationship between these features is seldom discussed. This paper aims to fill that gap. It begins with a suggestive remark made by La Rochefoucauld and repeated by Adam Smith: ‘Love often leads on to ambition, but seldom does one return from ambition to love.’ To explain what accounts for such a pattern, I introduce a distinction between stage-setting emotions and master emotions, which is useful for illuminating relationships between a number of emotions, including ambition and love. Drawing on things Smith says elsewhere in the Theory of Moral Sentiments, I conclude by highlighting one way the pattern might be reversed and ambition might lead to love.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Pettigrove, Professor Glen
• Authors: Pettigrove, G.
• College/School: College of Arts > School of Humanities > Philosophy
• Journal Name: Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• ISSN: 0066-7374
• ISSN (Online): 1467-9264
• Published Online: 27 April 2020
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2020 The Aristotelian Society
• First Published: First published in Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society 120(1):21-45
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy