Sexual Ethics Scholars

Question 1

Bentham

Answer 1

• Based his views on sexuality on the principle of utility, and therefore any act was acceptable if it maximised pleasure.
• “create all happiness you are able to create; remove all the misery you are able to remove”

Question 2

Aquinas

Answer 2

• Argued that one must cultivate the virtues of chastity and self-control to make sex a moral action.
• “Perfection of moral virtue does not wholly take away the passions, but regulates them”

Question 3

Pope Francis

Answer 3

• Restates Catholic Doctrine, but does so in a more compassionate and more understanding way
• “The greatest mission of two people in love is to help one another to become more a man and more a woman. Love is thus a kind of craftsmanship”

Question 4

JS Mill attitude to traditional Christian view of marriage

Answer 4

It subjugates women and gives them a lesser role