Essay about Utilitarianism and Happiness - 845 Words

This theory advocates that the actions worth is determined by maximizing utility (pleasure or happiness).it looks at the consequence of an action as to whether the outcome is good to the majority of people affected by it. According to Bentham, utilitarianism is the greatest happiness or greatest felicity principle. There are many types of this theory which include act vs. rule, two level, motive, negative and average vs. total. (Clifford G., John C. 2009) In act utilitarianism, when people have to make choices, they should consider the consequences of each choice and then choose that which will generate much pleasure. The rule utilitarianism looks at the rules of actions which are potential and looks at what would happen if a certain†¦show more content†¦Utility measurement should not be restricted to a nation or a group but to all mankind. It this theory all actions are assessed depending on the outcome they give at the end. A utilitarian acts in such a way that everything he does is towards achieving an outcome which is good for it to be termed moral. Some wars however do not give good results and this is why a pacifist will not advocate for such. These include self-defense and those wars that are toward protecting genocides. The consequentiality prohibitions given against war are contingent for most parts. Utilitarianism view of pacifism is grounded in some rule-utilitarianism. A utilitarian pacifist argues that a rule against war or other sorts of violence will tend to promote the greatest happiness for majority of the people involved. Also this prohibition against violence can give greatest happiness and this takes into account the sentient beings happiness other than humans. From history, war produces more harm than what people view as good. There is one problem however for consequentalists as to whether war could cause more suffering that solving the problem. Utilitarian defenders then say that some of these wars increased pain and suffering. If people will go against wars then, happiness will be the ultimate result. In this theory, killing is justified if it will eventually give happiness in the end. An individual can act the way he wants but should be careful not toShow MoreRelatedUtilitarianism And Happiness755 Words   |  4 PagesUtilitarianism has surrounded the view of happiness and ways to endorse it. The thought here is that all individuals look for joy, which is the objective of all individuals. At the point when an individual act is decent, he or she should attempt to achieve the best conceivable measure of happiness which is known as the greatest happiness principle. An individual must continuously deliver happiness, to decrease unhappiness. The theory is entirely centered around the result of an individual s actions;Read MoreUtilitarianism and Happiness945 Words   |  4 PagesUtilitarianism In his book, J.S. Mill attempts to build on Jeremy Benthams original idea of Utilitarianism. His definition of the moral theory is one that is grounded in Benthams original work but also extends to include remarks to criticisms of Utilitarianism. Mill believes that, like Bentham, utility is what is valuable to society. Utility, according to Mill, is the promotion of pleasure or the absence of pain. He defines this as happiness, which is why he refers to utility as the GreatestRead MoreUtilitarianism : The Pursuit Of Happiness1566 Words   |  7 PagesUtilitarianism according to mill is the pursuit of happiness in addition to the â€Å"prevention or mitigation of unhappiness (930). Utilitarianism is focused on maximizing happiness, in the greatest quality and quantity, of all sentient creation. What is ethical is thus determined by the end result towards self and society (amount of happiness) rather than the motive or action. Mill describes that actions are right if they â€Å"tend to produce happiness† (intended pleasure) and wrong if they â€Å"tend to produceRead MoreUtilitarianism, Or The Greatest Happiness Principle1407 Words   |  6 PagesUtilitarianism, or the Greatest Happiness Principle, states that the mo rality of an action should be judged based on the extent to which it produces happiness, or the opposite of happiness—an action is good as long as the result is happiness, and deemed bad if it results in pain. A clearer understanding of what Utilitarianism is can be gained by John Stuart Mill’s characterization of what it is not. He states, â€Å"I believe that the very imperfect notion ordinarily formed of its meaning, is the chiefRead MoreUtilitarianism : The Greatest Happiness Principle1176 Words   |  5 PagesUtilitarianism John S. Mill describes utilitarianism, also known as â€Å"The greatest happiness principle†, as a philosophical theory of morality. This theory is focused on the end result (a consequential theory) rather than the motive behind it. It argues that the morality of the action is solely dependent on the action’s results. The action is morally ethical as long as it produces the greatest happiness for the majority of people involved. Mill mentions, â€Å"†¦ the greatest happiness principle holdsRead MoreUtilitarianism : The Greatest Happiness Principle1574 Words   |  7 PagesUtilitarianism is best referred to as the â€Å"Greatest Happiness Principle.† This means that when one considers himself as a utilitarian, he believes it is only right to judge the rightness or wrongness of an action based on the consequences. In other words, â€Å"actions are considered moral when they promote utility and immoral when they promote the reverse† (Nubcaek 2011). T he principle of utility helps to capture an idea of the good is that which produces the greatest benefit, greatest advantage, orRead MoreEssay about Utilitarianism: The Greatest Happiness Principle528 Words   |  3 PagesUtilitarianism was first brought up along the nourishing of â€Å"The Greatest Happiness Principle† introduced by Jeremy Bentham and further developed by John Stuart Mill, who was a follower of Bentham (Sweet, 2013). Based upon its principle, Utilitarianism states that to be good is to generate the greatest possible amount of happiness for the greatest number. In contrast with rational egoism, Utilitarianism focuses more on maximizing the overall net happiness of the majority. When facing a decision toRead MoreUtilitarianism Essays : The Happiest And Pleasure Of The Most People Not Included The Personal Happiness1398 Words   |  6 PagesThe unsound of utilitarianism The utilitarianism theory is described as the happiest and pleasure of the most people not included the personal happiness. Jeremy Bentham believes there were two masters in this world that are pleasure and pain. On utilitarianism, we should reject pain and found a way to make more people happy no matter what the outcome. Utilitarianism is unsound because of events in history, life conflict, and animal cruelty that occurs in our everyday. All thru history, it has shownRead MoreHappiness And Happiness1736 Words   |  7 Pagesconcept and context: happiness. However, happiness comes with consequences and the utilitarian philosophy will make the decision if it’s morally right or wrong. This is where many types of utilitarian has emerged but the 3 time period will be addressed: Historical utilitarianism, Classical utilitarianism, and Modern utilitarianism. They are very similar but have important miniscule differences in them that separates them from each other but overall share the same concept of happiness. Key words:UtilitarianismRead MoreThe Pros And Cons Of Utilitarianism954 Words   |  4 PagesThe Pros and Cons of Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is the ethical belief that the happiness of the greatest number of people is the greatest good. Jeremy Betham and John Stuart Mill are two philosophers that were leading advocates for the utilitarianism that we study today. In order to understand the basis of utilitarianism, one must know what happiness is. John Stuart Mill defines happiness as the intended pleasure and absence of pain while unhappiness is pain and the privation of pleasure. Utilitarians