by Maria Mylona

In a world of over-analysis, self-improvement advice, and pseudo-wise Instagram quotes, pleasure has taken many hits. It is treated as shallow, temporary, perhaps even shameful. A man is expected to chase mission, meaning, and Jungian acceptance.

Modern psychology divides happiness into two broad categories: hedonic and eudaimonic. The first is about immediate pleasure, sensory satisfaction, living in the now. The second, rooted in Aristotle’s writings, revolves around meaning, growth, and spiritual fulfillment. In practice, however, there is no strict separation. A man enjoying wine with friends is not only savoring taste but also connection. A father smiling as he watches his son play football feels both pleasure and existential fulfillment at once.

The problem begins when pleasure is considered inferior. If you ask someone what’s more important, a philosophical debate or a football match, they’ll probably say the former. But a goal scored in extra time, with friends in the stands, is also a life experience. Pleasure is not merely superficial. It is subjective. And as research shows, those small, fleeting moments—a good meal, a joke, a glance—are the building blocks of our overall happiness.

It’s no coincidence that the most powerful life experiences combine pleasure with meaning. Our experiences are rarely purely hedonic or purely eudaimonic. They are a blend, and when social interaction is involved, happiness skyrockets. Interpersonal relationships are what give strength to every fleeting moment.

Pleasure is not the opposite of meaningful happiness. It is part of it. More often than not, these two aspects coexist like gears in the same machine. And in male reality, where the pressure for purpose and achievement is constant, simple, everyday pleasure is often the medicine we don’t realize we need.

This doesn’t mean falling into a hedonism of fleeting binges. But it does mean remembering that life is not only the climb—it’s also the break at the shelter. Honest enjoyment of small things, without guilt and without the need for deeper justification, is a sign of psychological maturity, not weakness.

And at the end of the day, you don’t have to choose between pleasure and meaning. Neither James Bond nor Socrates had a monopoly on male identity. You can create your own version—and sprinkle it with a little chocolate and self-awareness.

Maria Mylona is a Health Psychologist and Integrative Psychotherapist / www.mariamylona.gr