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Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure
Punishment Theory
JEREMY BENTHAM
Consequentialist theory?
Action of Judges Precedent Parliamentary sovereignty Max. Pleasure Min. Pain And More
Theory of Utility
Action
Utilitarianism
[I]t is the greatest happiness of the greatest number that is the measure of right and wrong and every action is governed by pain and pleasure
Introduction
Utilitarianism (from Lat. utilis: useful) is a tendency within normative ethics.
Introduction Cont..
The origins of utilitarian thinking go back to antiquity (Plato, Aristotle and Epicurus),.
Also found in mediaeval times (Thomas Aquinas) The early modern period (in particular, David Hume, ClaudeAdrien Helvetius and Cesare Beccaria) Of prime importance is Jeremy Bentham, whose work An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation (1798) laid the foundation of classical utilitarianism
Bentham begins his principal work An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation with the assertion that both our is and our ought are determined by pleasure and pain
Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure. It is for them alone to point out what we ought to do, as well as to determine what we shall do. On the one hand the standard of right and wrong, on the other hand the chain of causes and effects, are fastened to their throne
Next, Bentham introduces the principle of utility, which applies not only to private individuals but also to the government:
By the principle of utility is meant that principle which approves or disapproves of every action whatsoever, according to the tendency which it appears to have to augment or diminish the happiness of the party whose interest is in question: or, what is the same thing in other words, to promote or to oppose that happiness. I say of every action whatsoever; and therefore not only of every action of a private individual, but of every measure of government
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Sanction
Physical
Political
Moral Religious
Institutional order
Popular community Supernatural power
That is, it requires a theory about a suitable criterion for assigning something a value, so that it can be designated as good or bad.
For an action is not useful in its own right, but only with reference to something else. In view of that, utilitarianism needs a theory of value which defines the scale of utility, so that the utility generated can be measured.
So utilitarianism is a combination of consequentialism, on the one hand, and a value theory on the other
What is needed in the first instance is empirical knowledge; that is, knowledge of the consequences of an action and the meaning of these consequences for the welfare of society.
Thus the utilitarian theory of ethics is firmly rooted in reality. According to Bentham, the utility of an action can be determined precisely by making reference to seven criteria
(1) Intensity (2) Duration (3) Certainty or uncertainty (4) Propinquity or remoteness (5) Fecundity (6) Purity (7) Extent
That action or action rule is morally right, the consequences of which are optimal for the welfare of all parties affected.......,,According to Hoffe Bentham talks about the principle of the greatest happiness of the greatest number or the greatest happiness or greatest felicity principle The originator of the utility principle is acknowledged to be Francis Hutcheson, the teacher of Adam Smith. As early as 1725, he wrote in An Inquiry into the Original of our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue. Action is the best, which procures the greatest Happiness for the greatest Number, and that, worst, which, in like manner, occasions misery The utility principle represents the crux of Benthams entire theory of ethics, and can be traced in various forms through all his writings
The rightness of the utility principle is self-evident because it is instilled in man by nature. The utility principle, according to Bentham, is the sole ethical principle. The inference of this claim to absoluteness is that all other ethical principles must be wrong. In particular, it precludes the existence of any human rights which could prevail over the utility principle. According to Bentham, natural rights stem from mere wishful thinking and hence they are nothing but rhetorical nonsense
In proportion to the want of happiness resulting from the want of rights, a reason exists for wishing that there were such things as rights. But reasons for wishing there were such things as rights, are not rights; a reason for wishing that a certain right were established, is not a right want is not supply hunger is not bread. [. . .] Natural rights is simple nonsense: natural and imprescriptable rights, rhetorical nonsense, nonsense upon stilts
Forms of Utilitarianism
Act and Rule Utilitarianism
One can distinguish between the original form of utilitarianism, act utilitarianism, and a modified version of it, rule utilitarianism
What is Act Utilitarianism and Rule Utilitarianism and why modified version of the first is required?
Negative and Positive Utilitarianism Subjective and Objective Utilitarianism Total and Average Utilitarianism Happiness and Preference Utilitarianism
Forms of Utilitarianism
Maximum Pleasure & Minimum Pain Punishment Theory
Property Right
Action of Judges Legislation Precedent Parliamentary sovereignty
Advances flexibility over dogmatic persistence on principles. The stress is on the practices conducive to happiness not on natural rights or norms.
Weaknesses: The concept of happiness is not clear. Very vague: equated either with pleasures or with the public good. Measurements and the units of happiness are arbitrary and subjective. Disregard for motives and intrinsic values could lead to immoral and unjust consequences. The social (altruistic) component could be too demanding if pursued strictly.
Critique of Utilitarianism
The Boundary Problem
The Information Problem
The Confusion of Is and Ought Individual Versus Social Welfare The Problem of Distributive Justice The Problem of Basic Rights
Responsibility for Others and Ones Own Actions
Critique of Utilitarianism
Firstly, any quantitative estimation of a sentiment is a matter of imprecision per se
Secondly, the following difficulties arise: if the sensations to be compared are present simultaneously, then they are difficult to separate from one another because interference can take place between the two. if the sensation is not actually present, it must be conjured up with the aid of the imagination. Such a sensation is particularly difficult to assess, especially when it has never actually occurred and may very well only occur in the future Thirdly, the strength of the sensation can be influenced by the deliberate act of reflecting upon it and trying to quantify it The effective impossibility of interpersonal utility comparisons is the main objection to the technical practicability of a utilitarian theory of ethics The Confusion of Is and Ought