Consequentialism, By John Stuart Mill Essay

John Stuart Mill’s political philosophy is consequentialist due to the fact that utilitarianism is directly related to one’s happiness and reality in which they come to the point of being happy. Consequentialist is the philosophy that say the right moral decision produces the best consequence. An individual’s happiness is related and defined upon the ethics of morality, of an action based upon the outcome of that actions consequence. Mill defines “happiness as pleasure and the absence pain” (Mill). Thus, consequentialist and utilitarianism are directly related due to the fact the overall consequences of one’s actions are the direct result of defining both terms. At moral terms, utilitarian means to recognize that the greater good of others should be something that is sacrificed to truly meet the greater good of all people versus just one’s self. Thus, the action of making a sacrifice for others in a moral sense is creating a greater good and increase of what such happiness could be if actions were taking into account for all and not for the greater good of one’s self. In political terms, utilitarian simply means doing what is right for the people versus what the government feels is right to do. Mills would then reference that making decisions should be calculated by your pleasure. Mill’s defines utilitarianism as “holds that actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness. By happiness is intended

The modern theory of utilitarianism is a type of consequentialism--"the view that normative properties depend only on consequences;" that is to say, in other words,

Utilitarianism is a theory in normative ethics supporting the idea that the morally correct course of action is the one that maximizes utility, usually defined as maximizing totally benefit and minimizing suffering. By ‘utility’ in this sense we mean ‘happiness’ or ‘pleasure, or similar. Although there are many varieties,

Utilitarianism can be generally defined as a way of thinking where one chooses an action based on the amount of happiness that it would produce. In the book Ethics: Theory and Contemporary Issues, by Barbara MacKinnon and Andrew Fiala, the authors state “Utilitarianism is a form of consequentialism,” and that “John Stuart Mill explained it as ‘actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness.’” (MacKinnon 95). This means that utilitarianism focuses on result of an action based on happiness and that decisions can be taken made by looking at possible outcomes of that decision. What Mill stated would be defined as “ the principle of utility or the greatest happiness principle.”( MacKinnon, 95). This principle is one in which could be

Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that pivots around the belief that morality should be judged by consequence and the way in which an action can be deemed moral or immoral, depends upon the number to which it brings the greatest happiness. A decision can be defined as ethically correct under the theory of Utilitarianism if the moral choice provides the 'greatest good for the greatest number of people', proving that at the core of Utilitarianism are the ideals of pleasure and consequence. Although Utilitarianism provides a useful, simplistic way for making moral decisions,

Utilitarianism defined, is the contention that a man should judge everything based on the ability to promote the greatest individual happiness. In other words Utilitarianism states that good is what brings the most happiness to the most people. John Stuart Mill based his utilitarian principle on the decisions that we make. He says the decisions should always benefit the most people as much as possible no matter what the consequences might be. Mill says that we should weigh the outcomes and make our decisions based on the outcome that benefits the majority of the people. This leads to him stating that pleasure is the only desirable consequence of our decision or actions. Mill believes that human

The doctrine of utilitarianism is based on the principle of utility. Utilitarianism is mainly characterized by two elements; happiness and consequentialism. Utilitarian happiness is the biggest joy which every human being looks for in life. In utilitarianism everything useful to happiness is good. Therefore, the name of Utility is found in everything which contributes to the happiness of every rational being. The criterion of right and wrong is balanced between individual's happiness and the happiness of the entire community, "each counting in a balanced way". Consequentialism in utilitarianism is based on the fact that an action must be judged by its consequences on the happiness of the largest number. That is: my search for

Utilitarianism is a type of theory that was developed to come up with a proper course of action that maximizes the joy of the stakeholders involved. While consequentialism is defined as the view that value of an action derives solely from the value of its consequences. Today, consequentialism is the form that usually takes form. Utilitarianism tries to evaluate the moral worth of an action after one has considered the actual consequences, the foreseen consequences, and the anticipated consequences. In the business environment, situations arise that require the application of utilitarianism ethics. Decision makers are placed on notice and utilitarianism takes priority over the

A consequentialist, like Joshua Greene for example, would argue that morality is “goal directed”. If the goal that is desired is moral, then the decisions and actions to achieve this goal are also moral. If the consequences are good, then a person’s actions are good; if the consequences are bad, a person’s actions are bad or immoral, according to consequentialists. Therefore, from the utilitarian perspective, human behavior is neither good or bad, right or wrong; it is the consequences of the behaviors and actions that determine the morality (Behrens and Rosen 280). In the book “Utlitarianiam: A Guide for the Perplexed”, Krister Bykvist explains the classic version of utilitarianism, known as the maximizing act-utilitarianism, says that “an act is right just in case it leads to more total well-being than any other alternative action” (Bykvist). This approach tries to both increase good consequences and to reduce bad consequences (Behrens and Rosen 276). The utilitarian approach, therefore, does not base morality upon emotional feelings, but rather upon reason

In Utilitarianism, J.S. Mill gives an account for the reasons one must abide by the principles of Utilitarianism. Also referred to as the Greatest-happiness Principle, this doctrine promotes the greatest happiness for the greatest amount of people. More specifically, Utilitarianism is a form of consequentialism, holding that the right act is that which yields the greatest net utility, or "the total amount of pleasure minus the total amount of pain", for all individuals affected by said act (Joyce, lecture notes from 03/30).

Utilitarianism is a form of consequentialism, as it determines right and wrong by focusing on outcomes. Utilitarian’s believe that the most ethical decision is a choice that will produce the greater good for the greatest number of people. Furthermore, this means that the actions are deemed as right as long as they promote happiness and deemed wrong if they produce unhappiness. Utilitarianism also relies on a theory of intrinsic value, Utilitarians essentially believe that pleasure or happiness is the only thing that has intrinsic value, meaning that something is simple good in itself. A third fundamental claim held by utilitarian’s is that everyone’s happiness is matters equally.

Utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory that judges an action on its outcomes and aims to maximize happiness. This means finding the action that generates the “greatest good for the greatest number”.

Utilitarianism, or the Greatest Happiness Principle, states that the morality of an action should be judged based on the extent to which it produces happiness, or the opposite of happiness—an action is good as long as the result is happiness, and deemed bad if it results in pain. A clearer understanding of what Utilitarianism is can be gained by John Stuart Mill’s characterization of what it is not. He states, “I believe that the very imperfect notion ordinarily formed of its meaning, is the chief obstacle which impedes its reception; and that could it be cleared, even from only the grosser misconceptions, the question would be greatly simplified, and a large proportion of its difficulties removed” (Mill, 2007, p. 4). In defining Utilitarianism, Mill dispels common misconceptions that are held about Utilitarianism in order to give the reader a clearer understanding of the doctrine and the rationales that support it.

Utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory, as explained by the philosopher Mill. Given several choices, a utilitarian would pick the morally correct choice by using the Greatest Happiness Principle (487). By looking at whether the consequences of an action will produce the greater happiness for the greater number of people than another action would, one can

Utilitarianism is the ethical belief that the happiness of the greatest number of people is the greatest good. Jeremy Betham and John Stuart Mill are two philosophers that were leading advocates for the utilitarianism that we study today. In order to understand the basis of utilitarianism, one must know what happiness is. John Stuart Mill defines happiness as the intended pleasure and absence of pain while unhappiness is pain and the privation of pleasure. Utilitarians feel the moral obligation to maximize pleasure for not only themselves, but for as many people as possible. All actions can be determined as right or wrong based on if they produce the maximum amount of happiness. The utilitarian belief that all actions can be determined as right or wrong based only on their repercussions connects utilitarianism to consequentialism. Consequentialism is the belief that an action can be determined morally right or wrong based on its consequences. Just like any other belief system, utilitarianism faces immense amount of praise and criticism.