Utilitarian Ethics Theory

7/26/2019 Utilitarian Ethics Theory

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Utilitarianism


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What Utilitarianism is not

Deontological

Where the locus of value is the act or kind of act

Obligation to rules, as duty

EgoismTeleological ethics narrowed to the agent him or hers


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Descriptions of Utilitarianism

The greatest happiness for the greatest number Action that will bring the most good to the most

Teleological Where the locus of value is the outcome or the conse

of the act


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Development of Utilitarianism

!ophocles "in Antigone# $reon %udges it necessary to sacri&ce one person rather than e'p

society to the dangers of rebelliousness ( regardless of said persinnocence

*rances +utcheson In comparing the moral Qualitys of Actions, in order to regulate

Election among various Actions propos'd, or to nd which of themgreatest moral Excellency, we are led by our moral ense of !irtthus# that in e$ual %egrees of &appiness, expected to proceed fr

Action, the !irtue is in proportion to the umber of (ersons to w&appiness shall extend# ))) so that, that Action is best, which procgreatest &appiness for the greatest numbers# and that, worst, wmanner, occasions +isery)


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David +ume -.he rst circumstance which introduces evil, is that contrivance or

the animal creation, by which pains, as well as pleasures, are emploexcite all creatures to action, and ma*e them vigilant in the great w

preservation) ow pleasure alone, in its various degrees, seems to hunderstanding su0cient for this purpose) All animals might be conststate of en"oyment1 but when urged by any of the necessities of natthirst, hunger, weariness# instead of pain, they might feel a diminuti

pleasure, by which they might be prompted to see* that ob"ect whicnecessary to their subsistence) +en pursue pleasure as eagerly as t

pain# at least they might have been so constituted) It seems, therefopossible to carry on the business of life without any pain) 2hy then animal ever rendered susceptible of such a sensation3 If animals canfrom it an hour, they might en"oy a perpetual exemption from it 4)))5


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-eremy .entham +e formulated the principle of utility, which approves

action in so far as an action has an overall tendency tpromote the greatest amount of happiness/ +appinesidenti&ed with pleasure and the absence of pain/ To wthe overall tendency of an action, .entham sketched

"0happiness1making0# calculus or hedonic calculus, wtakes into account the intensity, duration, likelihood, etc of pleasures and pains/


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+edonic $alculus 2ariables34$ircumstances4

5ntensity6 +ow strong is the pleasure7 Duration6 +ow long will the pleasure last7

$ertainty or uncertainty6 +ow likely or unlikely is it thpleasure will occur7

8ropinuity or remoteness6 +ow soon will the pleasur

*ecundity6 The probability that the action will be follosensations of the same kind/

8urity6 The probability that it will not be followed bysensations of the opposite kind/

E'tent6 +ow many people will be a9ected7


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-ohn !tuart :ill ;5t is uite compatible with the principle of utility to recognise the fact, th

kinds of pleasure are more desirable and more valuable than others/ 5t wabsurd that while, in estimating all other things, uality is considered as wuantity, the estimation of pleasures should be supposed to depend on alone/4

;The only proof capable of being given that an ob%ect is visible, is that pesee it/ The only proof that a sound is audible, is that people hear it/// 5n lik

apprehend, the sole evidence it is possible to produce that anything is dethat people do actually desire it< =o reason can be given why the generis desirable, e'cept that each person, so far as he believes it to be attainhis own happiness< we have not only all the proof which the case admitswhich it is possible to reuire, that happiness is a good6 that each personis a good to that person, and the general happiness, therefore, a good to aggregate of all persons/4


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-ohn !tuart :ill An Empiricist

=ot all pleasure is eual

Assumes a non1hedonic notion of intrinsic value

*ormula6 ;+appiness < ?is@ not a life of rapture but mom

such, in an e'istence made up of few and transitory painand various pleasures, with a decided predominance of

over the passive, and having as the foundation of the wto e'pect more from life than it is capable of bestowing/

5ntellectual activity, autonomous choice, and other non1ualities supplement the notion of pleasure/


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*eatures of Utilitarianism

$onseuentialist 8rinciple "Teleological Aspect#The rightness or wrongness of an act is determined b

goodness or the badness of the results that Bow from

The end %usti&es the means

Utility 8rinciple "+edonic Aspect#The only thing that is good in itself is some speci&c tystate "pleasure, happiness, welfare#

8leasure is the only good

8ain is the only evil


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$lassical Types of Utilitarianism

Act Utilitarianism An act is right if and only if it results in as much good

available alternative

Cule Utilitarianism An act is right if and only if it is reuired by a rule tha

a member of a set of rules whose acceptance would lgreater utility for society than any available alternativ


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$lassical Types6 Act Utilitarianis

$annot do the necessary calculations to determiwhich act is the correct one in each case

Often one must act spontaneously and uickly

Cules of thumb are still practically important

The right act is still the alternative that results in

utility implies that we should always act in order to ma

happiness this is too strict a reuirement "all acmust be for the most utility of the most number,the cost of the self#


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$lassical Types6 Cule Utilitariani

The principle of utility is a guide for choosing rulindividual acts

Utility can be improved by breaking the same ruwhen %udged that by doing so we can produce mutility

The use of Cules of thumb and other similar base


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=egative Cesponsibility

8remises6 We are responsible for the foreseeable conseuences

choices we make/

!ometimes we choose to act, and sometimes we chooEither way, we are making a choice that has conseu

Therefore, we are %ust as responsible for the foreseeabconseuences that we fail to prevent as for those thatabout directly/

Doing the right thing minimiing the amount of

=o distinction between active and passive evil


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!trengths of Utilitarianism

5t is a single principle, an absolute system with apotential answer for every situation ( to promote $lear decision procedure in arriving at an answer abo

to do

5t seems to get to the substance of morality

5t has a material core6 to promote human Bourishing ameliorate su9ering

Appeals to the sense that morality is made for humanthat morality is not so much about rules as about helpeople and alleviating su9ering in the world


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8roblems of Utilitarianism

5ncommensurabilityThe inability to decide which of the variables rank &rs

they seem to conBict

Freatest +appiness or Freatest =umber


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8roblem of knowing the $omparative $onseuences of Ginds of conseuences are distinguished "$/5/ Hewis#6

Actual conseuences of an act

$onseuences that could reasonably have been e'pected to occur

5ntended conseuences

Therefor an act is6 Absolutely right if it has the best actual conseuences

Ob%ectively right if it is reasonable to e'pect that it will have the bestconseuences

!ub%ectively right if its agent intends or e'pects it to have the best c

Only the subseuent observer of the conseuences can deteactual results


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8roblem of =o Cest One should always do that act that promises to prom

most utility

There is often a preferable act that one can be doing

*ollowers of utilitarianism should get little or no rest ano right to en%oy life when, by sacri&cing, they can mothers happier


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8roblem of Absurd 5mplications 5t is counterintuitive

5f two acts result in IJJ hedons, where the &rst involvthe truth while the other involves lying, both should beual value "IJJ hedons#

Truth is then sacri&ced for e'pediency


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8roblem of 5ntegrity 8ersonal integrity is violated due to personal alienatio

5n an e'ample, if you are a guest at a mass e'ecutiondue to circumstances, you can save the rest by killing


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8roblem of -ustice Utilitarianism permits in%ustice

-ustice is secondary to utility

5f you can kill one unrelated person to save &ve otherutilitarianism, you should

5f you can ma'imie utility, you can sentence or framinnocent


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8roblem of 8ublicity :oral principles must be known to all so all may freel

said principles

Utilitarians usually hesitate to recommend that everyas a utilitarian for it takes a great deal of deliberationout the likely conseuences of alternative courses of


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Cesponses of Utilitarianism toOb%ections

Feneral Cesponse6 Act1Utility *eature when rules conBict or clearly will not yield the best

conseuences, the rules must be suspended or overrfavor of better conseuences

There is no distinction between killing and letting dieand passive# as they are eual under utilitarianism (

the rule against killing is suspended if it leads to grea"less killedKmore survivors#


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8roblem of =o CestThe rule prescribing rest and entertainment for the a

rule that would have a place in a utility1ma'imiing srules

5t would promote disutility for the average person to preoccupied with the needs of those not in their prim

( an average person can only do so much and there autility that can be gained through alternative means6%oining together and acting cooperatively


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8roblem of Absurd 5mplicationsThe bias against lying is a culture1induced moral bias

+appiness is tied up with a need for reliable informat"truth# on how to achieve said ends

Truthfulness therefore will be a member of rule1utility

.ut like other rules, it can be suspended for greater u


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8roblem of 5ntegrity !ome alienation may be necessary for the moral life

The utilitarian can take this into account in devising sof action

5ntegrity is not an absolute that must be adhered to acosts

Utilitarianism recognies the utility of good characterconscience


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8roblem of -ustice-ustice is not absolute

:ercy, benevolence, and the good of the whole sociesometimes should override %ustice

-ustice should not be overridden by current utility conhuman rights themselves are outcomes of utility cons

and should not be lightly violated

The utilitarian cannot foreclose the possibility of sacrinnocent people for the greater good of humanity

:orality was made for man, not man made for moral


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8roblem of 8ublicityThe ob%ection only works toward act1utilitarianism

Cule utilitarianism can allow for greater publicity for ithe individual act that is important, but the rules thatlikely to bring about the most good

The ob%ection only shows a bias toward publicity

8ublicity can be viewed as a rule of thumb to be overwhen there is good reason to believe that we can obtutility

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Utilitarian Ethics Theory