Outline the theory of Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is the theory that an action is better if it produces the greatest good for the greatest number. The 18th and 19th century saw rise to the theory of Utilitarianism which can be traced back to Jeremy Bentham. Francis Hutcheson put forward the initial principle of Utilitarianism ’The greatest happiness of the greatest number’. Utilitarianism is a teleological theory where depending on the consequences of the action‚ that action will either be good
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features of utilitarianism (21) The theory of Utilitarianism is based on the concept of utility‚ a theory of usefulness. Utilitarianism is a system of morality that generates us with what the most useful thing to do in different situations and outcomes. Different Utilitarian approaches to morality have emerged each with their own theory of good and community of concerning individuals. Featuring the main influential contributors to this theory are Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. There are two
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Mill’s understanding of freedom values the desires and goals of the each individual in a community. He states that "the only freedom which deserves the name is that of pursuing our own good‚ in our own way." By this‚ Mill is saying that freedom should guarantee liberty of rights based on personal interests and desires; it is evident that he puts a significant emphasis on individuality. Mill demonstrates that people should be allowed to do whatever they want by stating that states do not have the
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#1 Morality and Utilitarianism in Tennyson’s Godiva Tennyson’s poem “Godiva” follows its narrator’s recreation of the tale. Through this retelling‚ readers can see how Victorian ideas influenced Tennyson’s work. The piece is marked by a tension between utilitarianism‚ exemplified by Lady Godiva’s husband‚ and humanist ethics‚ demonstrated by Lady Godiva’s actions. Through this historical struggle‚ the narrator’s comments on modern society can be seen. He finds the utilitarianism useless; instead
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Utilitarianism is the idea that an action is morally right if the consequences of the action benefit everyone. In the case where a young man who cheated on his college entrance exam Utilitarianism says that this is not a morally right decision‚ because while the person who committed the action‚ the young man in this case‚ may benefit from the knowledge they gain from that education they got from that school‚ the action does not benefit the other young man or woman who did not cheat on the test and
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Utilitarianism: Bentham and Mill Utilitarianism begins with the work of Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)‚ an English political and social reformer. Educated at Oxford‚ Bentham eventually headed up a small group of thinkers called the “Philosophical Radicals.” This group‚ which included James Mill (father of John Stuart Mill‚ more on him later)‚ was dedicated to social reform and the promulgation of Bentham’s ideas. Bentham based utilitarian ethics on the so-called “greatest happiness principle
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John Stuart Mill as one of the most influential philosophers advocating liberalism points out the importance of freedom for individuals and therefore society. He thinks of freedom as an extrinsic value promoting happiness. As it will be shown‚ liberty as a mean to maximizing utility must not be restricted unless it causes harm to others or if the agent is not mature enough to exercise freedom properly. Mill’s “Doctrine of Liberty is supported by a view of human happiness which in turn depends on
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An Argument for the Legalization of Drugs‚ Based on John Stuart Mills’ "Revised Harm Principle" The question of whether or not to legalize certain drugs has been debated for decades. Although opponents have thus far been successful in preventing this‚ there are nonetheless a substantial number of people who believe that legalization should be given a chance. Their arguments range from the seeming ineffectiveness of current drug laws to the simple premise that the government has no right to
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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
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In his short essay‚ On Liberty‚ John Stuart Mill advocates for the preservation of individual liberty and for a lack of governmental involvement in the regulation in the idea of thoughts and ideas. Mill does this by first discussing when it is appropriate for a government to limit the liberties of its people‚ and then by discussing why it is important that governments generally preserve the sense of liberty experienced by the governed. Mill’s idea that individual liberties should be protected is
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