In this paper, I criticize the view that non-conscious entities—such as plants and bacteria—have well-being. Plausible sources of well-being include pleasure, the satisfaction of consciously held desires, and achievement. Since nonconscious entities cannot obtain well-being from these sources, the most plausible source of well-being for them is the exercise of natural capacities. Plants and bacteria, for example, certainly do exercise natural capacities. But I argue that exercising natural capacities does not in fact contribute (in a non-instrumental way) to well-being. I do so by presenting cases in which human beings exercise natural capacities that they do not enjoy exercising and that they do not desire (non-instrumentally) to exercise. I also argue that plausible views about fortune—how one’s well-being ranks on an appropriate scale—do not support the claim that exercising natural capacities contributes to well-being.

在这篇论文中，我批评了无意识实体——如植物和细菌——具有幸福感的观点。幸福的可能来源包括快乐、有意识的欲望的满足和成就。由于无意识实体无法从这些来源获得幸福，因此对它们来说最合理的幸福来源是自然能力的锻炼。例如，植物和细菌当然会发挥自然能力。但我认为，行使自然能力实际上并不能（以非工具性的方式）促进幸福。我通过展示人类锻炼他们不喜欢锻炼并且他们不希望（非工具性地）锻炼的自然能力的案例来做到这一点。