Archetypes of Wisdom
Douglas J. Soccio
Chapter 12
The Utilitarian: John Stuart Mill
Learning Objectives
On completion of this chapter, you should be able to
answer the following questions:
What is psychological hedonism?
What is ethical hedonism?
What is the principle of utility?
What is simple utilitarianism?
What is the “Hedonic Calculus”?
What is the Greatest Happiness Principle?
What is the “Egoistic Hook”?
What is refined utilitarianism?
What is altruism?
Social Hedonism
Modern utilitarianism developed as a response to social
conditions created by the Industrial Revolution, which
created a class of workers whose jobs were repetitious,
dangerous and poorly paid (i.e., degrading and
dehumanizing).
Hordes of workers sought work in the mill towns and
cities, creating large slums.
High rents resulted in overcrowding, as poorly paid
workers lived two and three families to an apartment.
Thomas Malthus
In 1798, Thomas Malthus (1766-1834), an Anglican
minister, wrote An Essay on the Principle of Population as
It Affects the Future Improvement of Society. He relayed
grave doubts about the feasibility of social reform.
He said that food production increases arithmetically, but
unchecked population growth progresses geometrically.
Troubled by growing slums, he said the only way to avoid
harsh “natural cures” like wars and epidemics was to stop
helping the poor and remove all restraints on the free
enterprise system.
The law of supply and demand would make it difficult for
the poor to marry early or support many children, thereby
checking the rapid rise in population growth.
Philosophy and Social Reform
It was in this context that Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)
directly challenged the owners, bosses, and ruling classes
when he insisted that “each counts as one and only one.”
Bentham criticized those in power for pursuing their own
narrow, socially destructive goals, instead of pursuing
happiness for everyone.
His solution was to establish democratic rule by the whole
society, rather than by a select class.
For Bentham, the legitimate functions of government are
social reform and the establishment of the conditions most
conducive to promoting the greatest happiness for the
greatest number of people.
The Principle of Utility
Bentham attempted to base his philosophy on careful
observation of social conditions and actual human
behavior.
Like Aristippus before him, Bentham saw that pain and
pleasure shape all human activity.
In An Introduction to Principles of Morals and Legislation,
he introduces the principle of utility, to “act always to
promote the greatest happiness for the greatest number.”
Sometimes referred to as the pleasure principle, the
principle of utility uses psychological hedonism (that pain
and pleasure determine what we do) to develop an ethical
hedonism (that these alone point to what we ought to do).
The Hedonic Calculus
Bentham wanted to make ethics a science. He formulated
the hedonic calculus, introducing mathematical precision
to the difficult task of weighing alternative courses of
action.
For this, Bentham proposed “units” of pleasure or pain,
called “hedons” (today often referred to as “utiles”).
When contemplating an action, one calculates the pleasure
and pain for those affected in terms of seven elements.
Bentham believed each of us already uses hedonic
calculation on an intuitive level, and that he was simply
adding scientific rigor to our informal methods of choosing
pleasure and avoiding pain.
The Hedonic Calculus
In Bentham’s hedonic calculus, he identified four elements
that affect pleasure or pain themselves. Two affect the
action related to pleasure or pain, and one is based on the
number of people affected. The seven elements are:
1. Duration: How long will the pleasure last?
2. Propinquity: How soon will the pleasure occur?
3. Certainty: How likely or unlikely is it that the
pleasure will occur?
4. Fecundity: How likely is it that the proposed action
will produce more pleasure?
5. Intensity: How strong is the pleasure?
6. Purity: Will there be pain accompanying the action?
7. Extent: How many other people will be affected?
The Question is,
Can They Suffer?
Bentham extended the ethical reach of the pleasure
principle beyond the human community to include any
creature with the capacity to suffer.
Bentham rejected any notion that animals lack moral worth
simply because they cannot reason.
In this, Bentham disagreed with Descartes, whose dualism
led him to conclude that animals are soulless, and so, not
members of the moral community.
But for Bentham, “The question is not, Can they reason?
nor Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?”
John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) is one of the most interesting
figures in philosophy.
His parents were estranged; his father was unfeeling.
His destiny was sealed when Bentham befriended his
father, and the two developed a rigorous education for John
Stuart, carefully planned to produce a champion of
utilitarianism.
John Stuart Mill
When he was twenty, Mill began to pay the high price of
his hothouse education in earnest with a depression or
breakdown he described as a “dry heavy dejection.”
Mill later blamed the strict environment in which he was
raised of robbing him of his feelings.
But aided by his superior intellect, Mill was eventually
able to pull himself out of his depression and develop a
fuller and deeper insight into the the human condition than
his two teachers ever knew.
Mill on Women’s Rights
Mill’s rigid training was also softened by his remarkable
relationship with Harriet Taylor. After her first husband’s
death, the two were married (fifteen years after they met).
She lived only another seven years, but Mill credited her
with improving his work for the better, saying, “the
properly human element came from her.”
One great effect she had was in the area of women’s
rights, leading Mill to write “On The Subjection of
Women,” and to become an advocate of rights for that half
of the population that had been hitherto denied a natural
environment in which to flourish.
Refined Utilitarianism
Mill could not accept Bentham’s simple version of
hedonism, leveling all pleasures as Aristippus had done.
Bentham failed to assign higher importance to moral,
intellectual, or emotional pleasures.
By introducing the notion of quality into utilitarianism,
Mill refuted the orthodoxy he had been raised to defend.
Most significant was Mill’s declaration that all pleasures
are not, in fact, equal.
Mill argued that there are empirical grounds for asserting
that what we might call “refined pleasures” are preferable
to the “cruder pleasures.”
Altruism and Happiness
Mill asserts that utilitarianism ultimately rests on “the
social feelings of mankind, the desire to be in unity with
our fellow creatures.”
Altruism – from the Latin alter, or “other” – is the
capacity to promote the welfare of others. Altruism stands
in clear contrast to egoism – no individual’s self-interest is
more or less important than any other’s self-interest.
The function of education is twofold: 1) to instill the skills
and knowledge necessary for an individual to live well and
productively, and 2) to create healthy, altruistic citizens.
But the second part requires that education become a lifelong activity, with people having the opportunities and an
environment conducive to that development.
Happiness and Mere
Contentment
Mill was not content with merely modifying behavior. He
wanted to reform character, too.
In this regard, he distinguished between happiness and
“mere contentment.”
Mere contentment is a condition of animals and those
unfortunate people limited to enjoying lower pleasures. A
major goal of Mill’s utilitarianism is to make as many
people as possible happy, rather than just content.
Mill believed that happiness requires a balance of
tranquility and excitement. Selfishness – the principle
cause of unhappiness – robs us of both.
Mill’s Persistent Optimism
According to Mill, the chief task of all right-thinking, wellintentioned people is to address the causes of social
misfortune.
From Mill’s (and Bentham’s) concern for society, we have
acquired the concept of public utilities, welfare regulations,
and mandatory minimum education laws.
Mill also argued that liberty of thought and speech are
absolutely necessary for the general happiness, since we
can determine the truth only through an ongoing clash of
opinions. He worried about what has been called “the
tyranny of the majority,” and warned against assigning too
much weight to majority beliefs.
Mill’s Persistent Optimism
In the end, Mill remained an optimist.
He maintained that by applying reason and good will, the
vast majority of human beings could live with dignity,
political and moral freedom, and a harmonious happiness.
He believed that “the wisdom of society” could extinguish
poverty, and that well-intentioned science could alleviate
many other problems.
Discussion Questions
How does Mill distinguish between happiness and
contentment?
Why is this distinction vital to his utilitarian philosophy?
What role does education play here?
Has your education lived up to Mill’s hopes? If yes, in
what ways? If no, why not?
Chapter Review:
Key Concepts and Thinkers
Psychological Hedonism
Ethical Hedonism
Principle of Utility
Altruism
John Stuart Mill (1806-1873)
Thomas Malthus (1766-1834)
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)