Preview

Explain The Preference Utilitarianism Of Peter Singer

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
498 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Explain The Preference Utilitarianism Of Peter Singer
Explain the Preference Utilitarianism of Peter Singer
Preference Utilitarianism is based on the idea that a good action is one that maximises the preferences of all involved so that my own want, needs and desires cannot apply to everyone.
Utilitarianism is a teleological or consequentialist approach to ethics, which means that the action’s outcome is looked at. It is the greatest happiness principle. It is the consequences of an action which judge whether it is good or bad.
Preference Utilitarianism Is based on the idea that a good action is one that maximises the preferences of all involved so that my own wants, needs and desires cannot count for anyone else’s needs, wants or desires.
Preference Utilitarian's consider whether a decision is right or wrong by asking whether it fits in with what people would rationally prefer.
Singer was influenced by a number of classic and
…show more content…
Hare said “the morally right action is the one that maximises that satisfaction of the preferences of all those involved”. So in other words, in this form of utilitarianism, it is important to take into account the preferences of the individual involved, except where those preferences come into direct conflict with the preferences of others.
Henry Sidgwick said “it is the motive (intending to bring about the greatest good) rather than the outcome that is good”.
To make an ethical decision, it is necessary to take an impartial view. Singer calls this the Impartial Spectator. An impartial spectator is someone who doesn’t count their own preferences as more important than the preferences of others. It is someone who can take an objective view rather than a subjective view.
Singer says that society is made up of a collection of individuals, each with their own preferences, so trade-offs have to be made for the general welfare of that society- in other words, some preferences have to be accepted and other rejected so that the good of all may be

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    A utilitarian would approach an ethical dilemma by identifying the alternative actions and their harms and/or benefits for all stakeholders.…

    • 285 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    John Stuart Mills explains, “In the golden rule of Jesus of Nazareth, we read the complete spirit of the ethics of utility. To do as one would be done by, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, constitute the ideal perfection of utilitarian morality.” (Mills 17) As individuals we all unknowingly seem to maximize the satisfaction of our own choices when we act. If one chooses to perfect activity A rather than activity B, we are then revealing that we as individual prefer performing activity A to performing activity B.…

    • 682 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Rule utilitarianism is a form of utilitarianism that says an action is right insofar as it conforms to a rule that leads to the greatest good, or that "the rightness or wrongness of a particular action is a function of the correctness of the rule of which it is an instance…

    • 842 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Eth 316 Week 1

    • 749 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Utilitarianism usually relies on predicting the consequences of an action. Utilitarianism sets that an action is morally right when the action produces more total utility for the group than any other alternative (Boylan, Chapter 12, 2009). In this ethical theory, the consequences should fully be considered, as it will affect the most people.…

    • 749 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism is a theory in normative ethics holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes overall happiness. Utilitarianism can be characterized as a quantitative and reductionist approach to ethics. It can be contrasted with deontological ethics which does not regard the consequences of an act as a determinant of its moral worth.…

    • 447 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism the theory that the right moral act is the one that produces the greatest good for society, emphasizes NOT RULES BUT RESULTS.…

    • 1265 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism revolves around the concept of “the end justifies the means.” It believes that outcomes as a result of an action have a greater value compared to the latter, the morally right action is the action that produces the most good. It also states that the most ethical thing to do is to take advantage of happiness for the good of the society. This normative theory considers the overall good for all people and not just a single person.…

    • 517 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism = an ethical philosophy that says the most ethical decision or course of action is the one that maximize utility.…

    • 790 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In terms of utilitarianism, actions are evaluated by the outcome. What we should do is to maximize the good outcomes and minimize the bad outcomes. The most promising way of reaching the final decision is to choose the one that would bring about the greatest net benefits to everyone affected by the action once the harms had been taken into account.…

    • 492 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism is an ethical philosophy which seeks to maximize well-being for the largest amount of people. This means that if you can secure pleasure at no moral cost, you should do so. It also means that if you can prevent displeasure for others without sacrificing anything of equal moral value, you should. In Utilitarianism the key is the well-being for the entire population.…

    • 443 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A utilitarian decides each action, by calculating the overall utility (good) that will results against the overall disutility (bad) that will result from a particular action. The action with the highest total net utility will be chosen.…

    • 996 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism in ethics is the theory that the rightness or wrongness of an action is determined by its usefulness in bringing about the most happiness of all those affected by it. The word utilitarianism comes from the Greek word telos, which means “end”. Under this direction, acting ethically means making decisions and taking actions that benefit the people by maximizing “good” and minimizing “bad” (danielsfund.org). Englishmen Jerry Bentham and John Stuart Mill were too of the most influential developers of the utilitarian view point. Utilitarianism focuses on the pursuit of happiness.…

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism is a relativist, consequentialist and teleological system of ethics based on the idea of ‘utility’. This means usefulness and utilitarian suggest that everyone should be the most useful thing. The theory was devised by Jeremy Bentham who said “an action is right if it produces the greatest good for the greatest number”. He believed human beings are motivated by pleasure and pain.…

    • 972 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Occupy Wall Street

    • 724 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Utilitarian is the moral doctrine that we should always act to produce the greatest possible balance of good over bad for everyone affected by our actions. The greatest happiness of all constitutes the standard that determines whether an action is right or wrong. Our belief that we are individuals and society is the net result of our choices. For example, the practice of blowing up rocks to release underground natural gas would not be permitted near residential areas if energy complaints…

    • 724 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism is a moral theory that an action is morally right if that action produces the greatest of good and happiness for the most number of people. Therefore, one should act if and only if one’s action produce the greatest possible balance of good and happiness over bad and unhappiness. Being one of the method that people commonly use to decide the rightness and wrongness of an action, utilitarianism provides a clear guidelines of the determination an action’s rightness. In addition, utilitarianism offers an objective way to resolve self-interest conflicts, and gives a simple methodology and flexible approach for moral decision making. Yet, nothing in reality can be prefect, including utilitarianism.…

    • 727 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays