1A: Bentham’s Act Utilitarianism

Question 1

What is utilitarianism influenced by?

Answer 1

Hedonism

Question 2

Who are the key thinkers of utilitarianism?

Answer 2

Jeremy Bentham and JS Mill

Question 3

What is the telos of utilitarianism?

Answer 3

maximising happiness

Question 4

What are the key principles of utilitarianism?

Answer 4

• maximising happiness
• harm principle
• the utility principle

Question 5

What is utilitarianism?

Answer 5

• relativist, consequentialist, teleological
• achieves to maximise pleasure and minimise pain to achieve the greatest overall happiness

Question 6

What did Bentham believe people were motivated by?

Answer 6

pain and pleasure

Question 7

What is hedonism?

Answer 7

the idea is that the only intrinsically good thing is pleasure

Question 8

What is the problem with a hedonistic mindset?

Answer 8

• pain cannot be avoided
• sometimes pain can be beneficial and held build character
• what one person might think is pleasurable might not be to someone else
• pain and pleasure is subjective

Question 9

What does consequentialist mean?

Answer 9

pays attention to outcome

Question 10

What does relativist mean?

Answer 10

no action is right or wrong in itself

Question 11

Is utilitarianism a religious ethical system?

Answer 11

No

Question 12

Who was Jeremy Bentham?

Answer 12

A lawyer and social reformer

Question 13

What did Bentham do as a part of his social reforming?

Answer 13

formulated a system that would benefit the needs of most people

Question 14

What is the name of Benthams book?

Answer 14

The Principles of Morals and Legislation

Question 15

Epicurus: “when __________ is present, we have everything, when it is absent, we do everything to ________ it”

Answer 15

happiness, possess

Question 16

Bentham: “nature has placed mankind under the governance of two ___________ __________, pain and pleasure”

Answer 16

sovereign masters

Question 17

What was Bentham’s guiding principle?

Answer 17

“the greatest happiness for the greatest number”

Question 18

Why is the theory called utilitarianism?

Answer 18

• derives from the word ‘utility’ meaning ‘useful’
• an ethical theory which says that the right thing to do in a moral dilemma is the most ‘useful’ thing
• the thing that is the most useful is the one which has the most likelihood of achieving the telos which we aim for
• Bentham said that the goal for which to aim is happiness
• Bentham was influenced by hedonism (seeing pleasure as the only intrinsic good, pain the only intrinsic evil)
• this was of thinking means happiness is to be achieved by maximising pleasure and minimising pain

Question 19

What is the utility principle?

Answer 19

• right actions are those which are most useful in maximising happiness
• the rightness/wrongness of an action is determined by its utility - the amount of pleasure or pain caused by an action

Question 20

What did the utility principle say that good moral actions are determined by?

Answer 20

whether or not they maximise pleasure/happiness and minimise pain

Question 21

What is the hedonic calculus?

Answer 21

a system made by Bentham to measure pleasure and pain

Question 22

What are the seven elements of the hedonic calculus?

Answer 22

intensity, duration, certainty, propinquity, fecundity, purity, extent

Question 23

Intensity

Answer 23

how strong is the happiness
- the stronger the better

Question 24

Duration

Answer 24

how long does the happiness last for (referred to as long)
- the longer the better

Question 25

Certainty

Answer 25

how sure can we be that the act will produce happiness - the more certain the better

Question 26

Propinquity

Answer 26

how close does the happiness follow after - the nearer the better

Question 27

Fecundity

Answer 27

how likely is this happiness going to lead to further happiness (will the happiness reproduce) (referred to as speedy) - the more chance the pleasure will be repeated, the better

Question 28

Purity

Answer 28

how free from pain is the act - the least amount of pain involved, the better

Question 29

Extent

Answer 29

how many people will receive the happiness - the more people who receive it the better

Question 30

What is act utilitarianism?

Answer 30

an act is right if and only if it results in as much good as any other alternative

Question 31

What is a problem with consequentialism?

Answer 31

we don't know for sure what consequences will result from our actions

Question 32

What quote summarises Bentham’s quantitative position? What does the quote mean?

Answer 32

"push pin is as good as poetry" - means that it doesn't matter what gives you pleasure, as long as it gives you deep pleasure - THERE IS NO HIERARCHY OF PLEASURE

Question 33

What makes act utilitarianism consequentialist?

Answer 33

- it determines whether ethical decisions and judgements are right or wrong based on the consequences of an action, how much pleasure it will produce - favours individual situations more than cases for the majority

Question 34

What makes act utilitarianism relativist?

Answer 34

- it looks as each situation independently because each situation is different - no universal moral absolute norms or rules

Question 35

Where does the hedonic calculus derive its name from?

Answer 35

Greek term for pleasure - "hedone"

Question 36

According to Bentham, how is pain and pleasure supreme in power?

Answer 36

they determine how we act mentally, physically, emotionally, psychologically etc

Question 37

Why is Bentham’s version called act utilitarianism?

Answer 37

"act" refers to individual actions that people choose to do when faced with a moral dilemma

Question 38

What are some problems with Bentham's system?

Answer 38

- it is consequentialist meaning we don't know from sure what consequences will result from our actions - there is something instinctively wrong with judging the morality of an action solely based on its outcome: some people are motivated by greed. what about sadists? they gain pleasure from torturing people - the theory seems to support the exploitation and abuse of minority groups

Question 39

What does egalitarianism mean and how can it be referred to in the context of Bentham's act utilitarianism?

Answer 39

- nobody's pleasure is more important than anyone else's - benthams measure of extent: "everyone is to count for one person" all pleasures should be a seen as one of equal value. all people are equal and deserve equal rights and opportunities

Question 40

What does impartiality mean and how can it be referred to in the context of Bentham's act utilitarianism?

Answer 40

- equal treatment - not being biased or prejudice - nobody is more important than anyone else - everyone should be treated without favouritism when it comes to happiness - example: just because someone is your best friend doesn't mean you should favour them over everyone else when calculating how to act