After all your hard work studying English vocabulary words, you probably need a break, and some time to relax and have fun. However, don’t go to the opposite extreme by turning to hedonism and devoting all of your time to the pursuit of pleasure. That’s our modern sense of the word hedonism, at least: a lifestyle in which a person constantly indulges in gourmet foods, luxurious surroundings, and sensual delights.

The word comes from the Greek hedone, meaning “pleasure.” In the 4th century BC, the Cyreniac school of Greek philosophy believed that pleasure (both physical and spiritual) was the most important aspect of life, and that the only reality was what could be evaluated by the senses. They weren’t completely self-serving, however; since social evils such as slavery cause pain to the slave, though pleasure to the owner who doesn’t have to do his own work, slavery is not something that causes pleasure overall, and so should be avoided. The later philosophy of Epicurus – from whose name we get the word epicurean – further developed this theory, and while the Epicurean philosophy also believes pleasure is the highest good, it is concerned primarily with the pleasures associated with tranquility of spirit and living a temperate life. Again, in modern English we now use the word epicurean in the same sense as hedonistic, referring to someone who is devoted to good food and drink and other riches, but this is contrary to the original philosophy, which was more ascetic than otherwise.

We’re not recommending you live an ascetic life either, of course! Although you might find it easier to concentrate on your English vocabulary study if you adopt the lifestyle of a monk or hermit (the meaning of the Greek root word asketes), a balance between work and play will bring the most beneficial results.