Utilitarianism Flashcards
What is Utilitarianism?
A moral theory which suggests we decide what is right or wrong by weighing up every possible consequence of our actions and seeing which ones promote the most happiness.
“Utilitarianism is a teological approach to ethics” What does teological mean?
There is a particular goal or purpose in making ethical decisions.
What is the Greatest Happiness Principle?
A principle which is defined by an action either being right or wrong based on if it promotes more happiness or more pain.
John Stuart Mill defines it as “the GHP holds the actions that are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness and wrong as they tend to promote the reverse of happiness”.
What are the three component principles of the Greatest Happiness Principle?
-The Hedonic Principle - Pleasure is the only good
-The Consequentialist Principle - Only consequences of an action matter when deciding if its right or wrong
-The Equity Principle - Everybody’s happiness is equally valuable. When judging if an action is right or wrong, we should consider everybody involved as equals no matter who they are.
Describe the Hedonic Calculus
7 criteria used to measure the quantity an action would make. Jeremy Bentham created this due to wanting to know how much pleasure an action would generate. You compare two actions side by side.
Explain how Bentham measured pleasure
(This answer requires an example)
By using the hedonic calculus. For example, being unfaithful to your partner. You can use the scenarios “cheat/don’t cheat”. You might gain immediate pleasure from being unfaithful, but could quickly cause guilt/pain. Pleasure might not last long either. So you create a table.
Explain how Mill measured pleasure
-believed quality was better
-argued that if all pleasures were of the same value than the pushpin is as good as poetry.
-wanted to address the common criticism that utilitarianism was a swine philosophy (basically saying it was obsessed with pleasure).
Why did Mill introduce Higher and Lower concepts?
(Pig quote)
He believed some pleasures were better than others, and he believed higher pleasures were much more valuable than lower pleasures. To support this he claimed “its better to be a human satisfied than a pig dissatisfied”
Describe Mill’s Higher and Lower pleasures?
Higher pleasures or intellectual pleasures are pleasures of the mind. often described as uniquely human, examples would be going to the theatre or reading poetry.
Lower pleasures are animalistic, meaning they are commonly shared with animals, for example: eating, drinking or shagging.
Describe the concept of a competent judge
A competent judge is someone who had experienced both higher and lower pleasures. They recognise them as much more valuable than lower pleasures. They would never want to sacrifice a life of higher pleasures for a life of lower pleasures.
Explain at least 2 criticisms of Bentham’s hedonic calculus
(keywords: unpredictable, incalculable)
-pleasure is unpredictable - you can’t know the future, and things rarely usually turn out how we think they will, it cannot be right to judge if an action is right or wrong based on pure chance.
-pleasure is incalculable - even if you knew exactly what would happen as a result of an action, it is impossible to add up all the pleasure and pain it will create. simply too much to calculate.
Explain at least 2 criticisms of Mill’s higher and lower pleasures
-There are going to be some people who have experienced both pleasures and preferred the lower ones. Not everyone is the same.
-A common mistake is that we seem to always be expected to give up any lower pleasure in favour of a high pleasure. This would lead to a bizarre situation where we could never drink, eat or have sex because we could do something which is a higher pleasure instead. Not practical and not what Mill is saying!
What is the difference between act and rule utilitarianism?
-Act Utilitarianism - The view that we should judge each action individually to assess if its right or wrong. Looks at short term consequences/considers the immediate consequences. Action is only right if it promotes the greatest happiness for the greatest number immediately.
-Rule Utilitarianism - The view that we should follow moral rules which promote the greatest long term happiness. Looks at long term consequences by following moral rules which promote the greatest amount of happiness. Developed into 2 forms, soft and hard. Soft allows rules to occasionally be be broken if the greatest happiness is produced, Hard never lets moral rules to be broken.
Explain 2 criticisms of act utilitarianism
(Impractical + Ignores Long term consequences)
-It is impractical - it isn’t practical to weigh up how much pleasure an action will be produced in every single situation. It doesn’t help us make quick decisions either.
-Ignores long term consequences - aims to promote immediate happiness, doesn’t look at the long term effect. For example, saving 5 lives over 2 sounds great, but what if those 5 people end up as serial killers.
Explain 2 criticisms of rule utilitarianism
(What rules do we follow? + Can create sadness)
-What rules do we follow? For example, if a friend tells you to not tell anyone that they cheated on a test, but a teacher asks you to tell the truth, should you tell the truth or keep a promise?
-Can create sadness, by sticking to rules and never breaking them, people can be made unhappy. If you have the chance to kill one murderer to save 5 victims but choose not to due to the ‘Do not kill’ rule, you may end up causing pain to 5 victims.
