Utilitarianism Ethical Theory

Utilitarianism: “The idea that an action is right, as long as it promotes happiness, and that the greatest happiness of the greatest number should be the guiding principle of conduct (Oxford Dictionaries).” This theory was thought up as far back as the 17th century, but didn’t become well known until late into the 18th century when Jeremy Bentham a legal and social reformer gave a powerful presentation of the idea. “Create all the happiness you are able to create; remove all the misery you are able to remove. Every day will allow you, will invite you to add something to the pleasure of others, or to diminish something of their pains (Jeremey Bentham).” Deontology: “An ethical theory that the morality of an action should be based on whether

Mill determines that there is not a great amount of support for the utilitarian principle, but that is mostly due to it being vastly misunderstood by a large number of people that choose to discredit it, instead of trying to learn its intricacies. The two main criticisms of utilitarianism are opposites of each other in terms of belief. The first group to oppose the happiness theory draws their conclusions from the typical sense of the word utility, where it typically stands for the opposition of pleasure. The other group to oppose this theory holds the opposite view and thinks that utilitarianism bases everything on pleasure. Neither of these are accurate representations of what utilitarianism is. The author defines utilitarianism as

In today 's society, we face many obstacles in our attempt to achieve the feeling of happiness. As intelligent beings, we try to solve these problems by taking the path that best benefits us. The theory of utilitarianism provides a solution to this but at what cost? What are the benefits and disadvantages of utilitarianism? Is utilitarianism an idea one should live by? What is utilitarianism? I plan on answering these questions within this paper and understand how they relate to everyday life. I will also look at arguments for and against utilitarianism. Then analyze the appealing and unappealing features to determine if utilitarianism should be followed as an absolute rule.

When an individual says that Utilitarianism is a good ethical theory because it justifies conventional moral wisdom they believe that because this theory maintains conservative principles and only has minimal mistakes, there is a valid purpose to favor this theory over any other theory that is presented. Utilitarianism does not support the notion of popular judgment but when comparing the other theories, utilitarianism does have fewer conflicts than any other theory. In other words although utilitarianism flaws in certain areas, it is the most precise in vindicating conventional moral wisdom. And so, when an individual claims that Utilitarianism is a good ethical theory, they are basing it upon it being successful to closely attain or preserve traditional ideologies.

Have you eaten breakfast this morning? Put on clean clothes? Did you have a bed to sleep in at the end of your day? For millions of less fortunate around the world, the answer to those questions is no. Knowing this is true, can you continue to go about your day and claim to be a moral and ethical person? In order to obtain the greatest pleasure for the greatest number of people, it is clear that you in order to uphold your moral duty; you must contribute to those experiencing poverty.

Going off of these videos, one can judge the actions of the characters through various philosophical lenses. These actions include when V kills a man, when V commits suicide, and then when the other members commit suicide.

Of the Ethical theories, Utilitarianism is the strongest because it utilizes empathy in the search for eliminating suffering, is not absolutist, and that it does not defer to God’s will. Utilitarianism was first formulated early on by Epicurus in his philosophy, Epicureanism, and then elaborated on later by his Contemporaries Frances Hutcheson, David Hume, Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham, and John Stuart Mill. These Ethical Theorists focused on the idea of having the law serve, rather than hinder, human interests, rather than having humans serve the law’s interest. Louis Pojman describes Utilitarianism as the following in his book How Should We Live?: “The theory that the right action is one that maximizes utility….

Next, the research must evaluate the alternatives by asking the following questions: Which alternative will provide the best outcome or do the least harm? (Utilitarian Approach) Which alternative best protects and respects the rights of the participants? (Rights Approach) Which alternative treats everyone equally? (Justice Approach) Which alternative serves the community the most? (Common Good Approach) Which alternative makes me act like the person I aspire to be? (Virtue Approach) After considering all of the approaches, the researcher must decide which one best applies to his or her situation.

Situation four was presented to my mother. She stated that it is a very horrible complex situation. Initially, she chose to tell him to keep silent and she would do the same. When asked why she said, “because a lot more people will suffer.” This would be a point of view aligned with a utilitarianism ethical belief system. However, she then changed her mind and reasoned that what he did was wrong, the reason for his confession to her after 14 years was guilt for the wrongdoing, and in order to relieve the guilt she would tell him that he should confess. She said she would not turn him in but suggest that he turns himself into the authorities. She also stresses that the revelation would definitely alter their relationship and she would not be

Utilitarianism is a moral theory that has long been the subject of philosophical debate. This theory, when practiced, appears to set a very basic guideline to follow when one is faced with a moral dilemma. Fundamental Utilitarianism states that when a moral dilemma arises, one should take action that causes favorable results or reduces less favorable results. If these less favorable results, or pain, occur from this action, it can be justified if it is produced to prevent more pain or produce happiness. Stating the Utilitarian view can summarize these basic principles: "the greatest good for the greatest number". Utilitarians are to believe that if they follow this philosophy, that no matter what action they take, it

The theory of Utilitarianism states that actions should be judged as right or wrong depending on whether they cause more happiness or unhappiness. It weighs the rightness and wrongness of an action based on consequences of that action.

Mill begins his book on Utilitarianism by laying out some basic ethical and philosophical ideas. From what I have read in his book I believe that Utilitarianism can be defined as the idea that humans should make decisions based on the ability to promote the most happiness to them. Another way to say it would be that Utilitarianism states that a good decision is what brings the most happiness to the most people. Mill based his utilitarian theory on the decisions that people make. He says the decisions people make should always benefit the most people as much as possible no matter what the consequences might be. Mill says that we should balance the outcomes and make our decisions based on the outcome that is in the interest of 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 beings have the ability for conscious thought, and they are not satisfied with physical pleasures, but they will try to achieve pleasure of the mind as well. He claims that people seek pleasure and reject pain. I will point out some problems that Mill has with this theory and use examples to express my stance.

In this essay, I will be discussing an article about a woman who starved her two horses. I will address the issue about whether or not the woman’s action was ethical. I will use the two ethical theories of utilitarianism and Kantian ethics to support my argument. I will also suggest a different course of action the woman could have taken to be justified, through both ethical theories.

Utilitarian theory asserts that an action is morally right if it is giving happiness to majority in the society, because of this assumption of this theory it can be unfair to those in the minority as main concern in this theory is happiness of majority not of minority. This base of utilitarianism theory holds that actions that cause suffering to a minority for the benefit of the majority in the society are morally good when they give more overall goodness than alternatives actions. According to my views we can’t expect the overall goodness of the society with doing this type of discrimination in the two parts of society.

Numerous moral theories have surfaced in the past years. They have been widely debated by philosophers and social reformers. It is important to understand what these theories are because of their influential tendencies in the way people act, especially in making morally right or wrong decisions. Utilitarianism is one of these many moral theories. Upon further analysis, problems with utilitarian thoughts are revealed. It has been widely debated by many philosophers, including G.E. Moore and Immanuel Kant. Like these two philosophers, I argue that utilitarianism is inadequate because of its contradictory nature as a moral theory. It highlights the principle of utility in seeking the greatest pleasure, allowing egotistic and hedonistic actions to be considered moral.