ABSTRACT

Motive can be a matter of life or death. In a criminal trial the motivation of the accused determines whether the crime is manslaughter or first, second, or third degree murder. Strikingly, the most severe punishment is given to the killer who was most thoughtful, most sensible, most rational, most deliberate in his action, though these are qualities that are otherwise highly prized. This chapter explores why people do various things that yield them pleasure and discusses food, sex, alcohol, and other drugs. It begins with the assumption that what people do reflects in important measure what they want to do, that human action is not primarily the outcome of compulsion and that human choice is not a lottery. Many people can control their habit, whatever it is, and even if they approach the edge, they don't fall off. Nevertheless, there is a major drug problem in many communities.