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utilitarianism, Bentham's Act Utilitarianism
in any situation we…
utilitarianism
Hedonic Calculus
- helps measure consequences of action in terms of pleasure
- intensity
- duration
- certainty
- propinquity
- fecundity
- purity
- extent
allows pleasure and pain to be measurable
- a tool people can use when making moral decisions
- easier to assess right action for the situation
looks to establish whether an act has a balance of pleasure over pain
- if it does, then the act is right
principle of utility
- 'the greatest good for the greatest number'
- in any situation we should choose the action that maximises pleasure and minimises pain for the maximum number of people involved
naturalist- based on real-world observations
- can observe people and see that they are motivated to seek pleasure and avoid pain
- 'nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure'
- these determine 'what we ought to do' and 'what we shall do'
-
happiness and pleasure
everyone has an equal right to happiness
- 'each person is to count for one and no one for more than one'
all pleasures are of equal importance
- 'the game of push-pin is of equal value with the arts and sciences of music and poetry'
evaluation
strengths
committed to principle of equality amongst humans
- greatest good for greatest number
- everyone has an equal right to happiness
- all pleasures of equal importance
Hedonic Calculus provides useful tool for decision making
- easier for people to follow and figure out right action
teleological/situational
- not as rigid as other theories
- actions are not inherently good/bad
- allows people to pick most appropriate action for specific situation
- more of a considerate approach
based on principles of human nature
- intuitive rule for humans to follow
- if we were to give a different principle, humans would likely end up seeking pleasure and avoiding pain for themselves and their loved ones anyway
weaknesses
teleological
- requires us to estimate future consequences
- human error, likely to get wrong
- e.g. saving life of child who ends up being a serial killer
- at the time appeared good because couldn't foresee consequences, but in reality brought about more suffering than happiness
response- most would agree to save life of child
- most situations do not have such consequences
- e.g. in most cases saving life of child would probably lead to balance of happiness over pain for everyone concerned
ignores motives
- morality of an action lies in motivation, not just consequences
- if you intended to do a bad act but actually brought about good consequences (e.g. didn't save child's life who turned out to be serial killer), this should still be wrong
response- the motive of a true utilitarian is the same as the intended consequence
- to bring about the greatest happiness for the greatest number
ignores rights of minorities
- many situations where majority aren't morally right
- e.g. seven sadistic guards raping one woman
- principle of utility seems to justify because it brings about happiness for 7 people, as opposed to pain for 1
response- misunderstands Hedonic Calculus
- fecundity, purity and extent require calculation of pleasure and pain to be made with reference to all concerned
- extent of her pain exceeds extent of their pleasure so likely wouldn't permit such an act
commits naturalistic fallacy of going from an 'is' to an 'ought'
- goes from facts to moral values
- cannot go from 'happiness is what humans desire' to 'you ought to bring about the greatest happiness for the greatest number'
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Bentham's Act Utilitarianism
- in any situation we should choose the action that maximises utility