UTILITARIANISM
A teleological ethical theory
founded by Jeremy Bentham.
Would you authorise someone to
be tortured to save innocent life?
Jeremy Bentham 1748-1832
“Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two
sovereign masters, pain and pleasure. It is for them alone
to point out what we ought to do as well as determine what
we shall do.”
•Utilitarianism is the ethical theory
founded by Bentham.
• Believed that Human beings were
motivated by pleasure and pain
• Can be called a Hedonist
(Greek for pleasure. )
The principle of Utility.
Murder
Stealing
Abortion
War
Lying
Principle of Utility
• The rightness and wrongness of an action is determined by its utility
(or usefulness)
Usefulness
the amount of pleasure caused by the action
This theory is known as the greatest happiness principle, or a theory of
usefulness.
Good= greatest pleasure
or happiness.
The least pain and sadness.
Greatest number=
majority of people..
TASK
Goodness according to Bentham
•
Think about What is good? It is difficult
to define what is good and yet it is a
question at the heart of all ethical
theories.
1. Describe what Bentham means by
“Good”.
2. In your own words explain what is meant
by the term Principle of Utility.
Utilitarianism:
The greatest good for the greatest
number”
But how can we measure pleasure and pain? How do we
know what is the greatest good ?
Hedonic Calculus
•
The pursuit of happiness is the fundamental purpose of human life. Bentham
consisted in promoting whatever factors led to the increase of pleasure and in
suppressing those which produced pain (Costigan, 1967, p. 8). In chapter 4 of his
Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation (1789), Bentham
sketched his idea of hedonistic calculus. As his theory implied, law should
enforce actions and dispose sentences whereby this maximizing of pleasure and
minimizing of pain could be most effective. In short, Bentham stated that
pleasures and pains, which exist only in individuals, could be constructed into a
calculus of value Hedonic calculus considers seven factors which include:
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1.
2.
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as a
The intensity of the pleasure or pain.
The duration of the pleasure or pain.
The certainty or uncertainty of the pleasure or pain.
The remoteness of any pleasure or pain. (Propinquity)
The chances of the same effects being repeated. (Fecundity)
The chances of the same effects not being repeated. (Purity)
The number of people who will be affected by any pleasure or pain arising
result of the action(s) in question.
• These seven factors weigh up the potential pleasure or pain which
might arise from moral actions to decide the best options. Ideally,
this formula should determine which act has the best tendency and
is therefore right. Bentham hoped this theory could be used for
criminal law reform. Incorporating it into criminal law seemed almost
too easy. Given a certain crime, it would be possible to work out the
minimum penalty necessary for its prevention
(http://faculty.mc3.edu, 2003).
•
Bentham argues that all human actions arise from this theory
of hedonic calculus. According to him, almost all actions could be
placed into this equation.
• (Altruism, love, asceticism, a desire for freedom, duty, faith,
obedience to law, etc. are all able to be reduced and placed in
pleasure and pain calculations (http://cepa.newschool.edu,
2003). Bentham drew a huge and extremely complex table of
pleasures and pains. This table and his theory of hedonic calculus
was the basis of Utilitarian morality (Costigan, 1967)
Apply the following
case study to the Hedonic
Calculus.
(complete ideas on sheet)
Case study 1
(American west, trying to
escape from the bad
guys who are asleep in their
Tents .
If they hear you and find you
All of you and your family will
Be killed. Your baby starts to
Cry. If you quickly suffocate
The baby to stop it from crying
You wil all be saved. What do
Do??
?????
TASK
answer the following questions:
1.
Why might the fact that we aren’t always able to predict the future
be a problem for Utilitarianism? Give an example.
2.
Can you think of any pains that are good and any pleasures that
are bad?
3.
Are affection or honesty good in themselves, or only because they
have good results?
4.
Why might a critic of utilitarianism argue that the theory doesn’t
protect the interests of minority groups?
5.
Why does Bentham’s theory pose a problem for those who
believe we have a special obligation for certain people (parents,
family etc)
6.
Sadistic guards torture a wrongly imprisoned innocent man. What
difficulty does this example pose for Bentham’s theory?
Jim finds himself in the central square of a small South American town. Tied
up against the wall are a row of Indians, mostly terrified, a few defiant, in front of
them several armed men in uniform. A heavy man in a sweat stained khaki shirt
turns out to be the captain in charge and after a good deal of questioning of Jim
which establishes that he got there by accident while on a botanical expedition,
explains that the Indians are a random group of the inhabitants who, after recent
acts of protest against the government, are just about to be killed to remind other
possible protesters of the advantages of not protesting. However, since Jim is an
honoured visitor from another land, the captain is happy to offer him a guest’s
privilege of killing one of the Indians himself. If Jim accepts, then as a special mark
of the occasion, the other Indians will be let off. Of course, if Jim refuses, then there
is no special occasion and Pedro here will do what he was about to do when Jim
arrived and kill them all. Jim with some recollection of schoolboy fiction, wonders
whether if he got hold of the gun, he could hold the captain, and the rest of the
soldiers to threat, but it is quite clear from the set up that nothing of that kind is
going to work: any attempt at that sort of thing will mean that all the Indians will be
killed and himself. The men against the wall and the other villagers understand the
situation and are obviously begging him to accept. What should he do?
a) On what grounds would a utilitarian kill the single prisoner?
b) Would you agree with a utilitarian that the action was good?