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Utilitarianism - Coggle Diagram
Utilitarianism
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ACT
Non-religious basis for ethics, without implication of an afterlife or duties to a God, the goal of ethical action is to make human life as good as possible
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“nature has placed us under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure”.
It is human nature to find pleasure good. Bentham says we are simply determined for our ultimate goal to be happiness, pleasure minus pain
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An action is good if it leads to the greatest pleasure for the most people, it is consequentialist in that the utility is the defining factor, not the method
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RULE
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Similar to act, however we apply the principle of utility to rules, making a good rule one which follows the principle of utility
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When it comes to our actions that regard our own interests, Mill thought we should have total freedom.
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B&M's lovers spats
Bentham thought that all pleasure was equal, the only thing that matters is the quantity of pleasure compared to pain an action produces, making for quantitative ethics
Mill disliked this, it reduced life to hedonistic pleasure seeking, resulting in utilitarianism only being fit for 'swine'
Therefore Mull distinguished between pleasures. Higher pleasures are those produced by mental activity whilst lower pleasures are those produced by bodily activity
We cannot calculate a 'priavte' mental state, making it difficult to quantify let alone measure
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Calculation issues
We must calculate the usefulness of an action based on its overall consequences. However, we do not know these consequences before we perform the action, especially when it comes to long term effects
Furthermore, moral situations can be time sensitive, so we may not have enough time to perform the calculations whilst subjective states such as pleasure and pain can be difficult to measure, therefore making it difficult to practically apply utilitarianism
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Tyranny of majority
Inconsistent w/human rights, in the right situation slavery can be morally acceptable due to majority pleasure, killing a donor for 5 organs
Mill creates his 'harm principle', which states that we should seek pleasure without harming others, then everyone is in a good position