Preview

John Stuart Mill Act Utilitarianism

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1577 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
John Stuart Mill Act Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism is a standard ethical theory that claims the greatest moral action is the one that maximizes utility. This well-known consequentialist theory views that right or wrong depend on the consequences of an act and not the intentions or motives that produce the act .Ultimately, the purpose of the act should be one that maximizes utility and promotes a better world.For instance philosopher Bentham’s principle of utility is based on the idea that an action is right if it produces the greatest amount of pleasure for the greatest number of people.On the other hand, Mill’s principle of utility is based on the idea that an action is right if it promotes happiness,and wrong if it produce the reverse of happiness.Utility is a principle …show more content…
First the act utilitarianism which focuses on the consequences of the individuals act and measure utility each time the act is performed. Second the rule utilitarianism that observes the consequences of making everyone follow a certain rule and measure the overall utility of implementing or rejecting the rule.One is to reason through the moral worth of an action by considering the consequence of the action and it’s input to the overall utility in maximizing happiness or pleasure .The overall objective of this theory is to act in a way that will produce the greatest amount of happiness or pleasure to the greatest amount of people.However , Utilitarians will claim there’s no universallly valid moral principle that can be apply to all humans because all moral values are relative to culture and indivuals intrinsic values. Although, there’s a strong doctrine of negative responsibility pertaining to the concept of Utilitarianism. This doctrine declares that people are responsible for actions they fail to prevent as well as they are for actions they …show more content…
Nevertheless , I will defend the theory against these objections by reasoning how the concept of utilitarianism will favor the greater amount of people and therefore the sacrifice a person will make is the reason why this principle is morally right to follow. In any type of situation there’s always going to be a dilemma, where one person will have to commit an action that may affect another person or a whole group in a positive or negative way. However ,we as human beings living as a community will have to put ourselves in the position of those whom we will affect and do what’s best for the whole no matter what obstacles we may encounter. In reference to the negative responsibility doctrine , we as humans are not always in control of everything surrounding us therefore why should we have that moral responsibility of actions not directly committed by us directly.That would not be right in most causes because it would violate or right of being humans, and ultimately all actions would either way have a contradiction . So, it would always be right to do what's best for all and not what’s best for us a

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Utilitarianism or the greatest happiness principle, is mainly characterized by happiness and consequentialism. The measure of good and evil is balanced between individual 's happiness and the happiness of the community. (Sommers & Sommers, 2013) If you treat others how you wish to be treated, you are acting in the greater good for the most amounts of people, and in doing so, you are acting with morals. To act selfishly, you are acting morally wrong. This theory relies on producing the greatest amount of happiness. (Sommers & Sommers, 2013)…

    • 1183 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The creed which accepts as the foundation of morals, Utility, or the Greatest Happiness Principle, holds that actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness” (11). That quote is from “Utilitarianism” written by John Stuart Mill. Mill is noted in history as a man who pushed for radical change of social and legal principles using Utilitarianism as his guide. That quote sums up his belief in that theory. In this essay I will be discussing Mill, the theory of Utilitarianism and how that theory relates to contemporary ethical issues.…

    • 430 Words
    • 2 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 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 theories hold that the moral worth of actions or practices is determined by their consequences. An action or practice is right if it leads to the best possible balance of good consequences over bad consequences for all affected parties. (Arnold, pp 17)…

    • 790 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    This theory is a consequentialist based ethical theory which states you must choose the action that increases the total utility. John Stuart Mill was a key proponent of Utilitarianism. Utility is defined as the total happiness or pleasure, minus the total unhappiness or pain involved in the action. Another name for utility is the Greatest Happiness principle. From the definition of utility, pleasure and the absence of pain are the only things desirable as ends in themselves and are the only things that are good.…

    • 1730 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the argument of utilitarianism, if the consequences of an action are good, benefiting the population, then they are considered good. On the other hand, if the actions have negative consequences, then they are considered bad. The consequences…

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    John Stuart Mill was considered a Utilitarian. The philosophy of Utilitarianism is that an action should be decided by what is best for society. Mill’s philosophy was in part developed by his upbringing as a child. His childhood was restricted and he was raised in an enviroment where is emotionally needs were not met. Also his father was a friend of Jeremy Bentham. Bentham was a philosopher credited with starting the beginings of the Utiltarianism philosophy. He focused on the relationships between the social classes and working towards social reform. His philosophy focused more on social conditions and human behavior than previous philosophies had. He looked at practical solutions for societies problems and less on the metaphysical aspects…

    • 1258 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Shaw and Barry

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Rule Utilitarianism is based only on one single rule, which is utility. According to this theory, it is immaterial whether the utility provides any happiness or not. According to this theory, it is the value of the consequences of a particular act that counts while determining whether an act is morally correct or not. The value of consequences of an act is determined by the number of positive outcomes that can result for the greatest number of people.…

    • 932 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

    Utilitarianism can be classified in two distinct ways, act and rule. In these ways the utility principle is applied differently. Act-Utilitarianism is concerned with treating each moral situation as unique; therefore, applied the utility principle to each act. The Fundamentals of Ethics states, “Rule-utilitarianism is the version of rule consequentialism that says that well-being is the only thing of intrinsic value” (Shafer-Landau, Russ G-6). This means rule-utilitarianism draws up general rules based on the utility principle. Furthermore, rules are right if they produce greatest happiness for the greatest number.…

    • 616 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are 2 main types of utilitarianism, the first I will talk about is Rule. Rule utilitarianism has certain principles involved with it, and from these, certain actions that we commit are able to be deemed as unacceptable. The principle of utility is therefore applied to a rule so the rule will stay if it leads to greater happiness for more people. This therefore means that if you do something bad that may lead to many people being happy, it could go against a rule or principle that has been set down in Rule…

    • 616 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utiliarianism

    • 840 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Utilitarianism is a theory in normative ethics holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes utility, usually defined as maximizing happiness and reducing suffering. Utilitarian ethics emphasizes the consequences of our acts. From the utilitarian perspective, there is no mystery about ethics; the right act is simply the act that produces the greatest balance of pleasure over suffering.…

    • 840 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays