The Two (and only two) Kinds of Pleasure

There are only two kinds of positive pleasure that I am aware of.

First, oral pleasure. Tasting a pleasant thing. Sugar, salt.

Second, orgasm.

I could add a third, which is drugs, but I have limited experience in the matter, and of the drugs I have tried, none specifically elicited a feeling of pure pleasure, but instead feelings of altered awareness.*

All of the other pleasures are negative pleasures. The pleasure of warmth is only significant because of the pain of cold. The pleasure of bright coloured light is only significant because of the darkness of night. The pleasure of a gentle touch is only significant because of the feeling of loneliness.

*Perhaps though, it is enough to shock the body with something new, so that endorphins and adrenalin are produced, and a feeling of pleasure simulated. The same can be said about bitter and sour tastes, which cannot in themselves be said to be pleasurable, yet create a pleasure-like response. Music can also be explained in this way, I think, in that any single tone, by itself, cannot be considered pleasurable, nor is an unfamiliar sequence generally considered pleasurable, but a kind of alchemy must occur in the mind in order to manufacture pleasure out of such an experience, usually after being repeated several times.