Utilitarianism

Question 1

what is utilitarianism

Answer 1

deciding your actions by which actions maximises pleasure and minimises pain

Question 2

name 3 classic utilitarians

Answer 2

bentham, hutcheson and mill

Question 3

Is classical utilitarianism concerned with how pleasure/happiness is distributed?

Answer 3

no as long it creates the greatest aggregate amount pleasure over pain

Question 4

how does utilitarianism constitute a theory of justice?

Answer 4

as it provides an overall aim and (way of judging) morality

Question 5

What is the main difference between mills and bentham’s agruments for utilitarianism

Answer 5

bentham believed it wasnt possible to argue for the truth of utilitarianism where mill believed we could

Question 6

two main elements of mills argument for utilitarianism

Answer 6

1. what is desired is desirable ie. pleasure
2. we should all aim to promote the aggregate happiness because if my happiness is good for me then it is good to the aggregate of people

Question 7

two main problems with mills utilitarian argument

Answer 7

1. we may desire pleasure but doesn’t show it is desirable in the sense of being worth desiring. G.E. moore gives example of someone desiring to steal but this doesnt make it a good action
2. The aggregate of the people doesnt exist as a separate thing from the people. Each separate pleasure may only be good for each separate person

Question 8

Economists and game theorists take utilitarianism as a assumption of ____?

Answer 8

rationality

it is irrational to settle for a lesser good over a greater one

Question 9

why might using utilitarianism to justify social reform be problematic?

Answer 9

• individuals are unmotivated to care and concern their actions with the aggregate good when they may never meet/know who it is benefiting. No sense of community
• aiming for the aggregate good may not be morally important as individuals may just want to aim to live well together

Question 10

what are the three ways of judging an expected utility

Answer 10

• backward looking - evaluating the future consequences of our actions
• forward looking - it is uncertain what how much utility an action will produce
• probability - consider the probability of particular actions and their consequences

Question 11

why do economists and social planners have an issue with taking utility to be pleasure?

Answer 11

it is very hard to measure pleasure.

Question 12

what is classical or act utilitarianism?

Answer 12

based upon the notion that all actions should maximise happiness and minimise pain

Question 13

why might classical utilitarianism raise questions of morality?

Answer 13

• it justifies pain so long as the final outcome results in more pleasure.
• it claims you have no obligation to obey the law so long the end result is just. some may consider the consequences of of their illegal actions in their calculations of their actions

Question 14

What is McCloskey’s (1972) famous example that criticises utilitarianism? and what major flaw does it show?

Answer 14

• a man has been called witness over the rape of a white woman by a black man from which there have been subsequent race riots as a result of the rape. McCloskey states if a witness was a utilitarian he would have to claim he was guilty in order to avoid the unhappiness the subsequent riots would cause.
• it takes into account the likely consequences of actions rather than considerations such as right and justice. Example doesnt consider the man’s liberty

Question 15

why might a society striving for the aggregate good be problematic?

Answer 15

measuring pleasure is very individualistic. therefore judging if an individuals action is good just for them or the overall sum of pleasure is problematic

Question 16

what is rule utilitarianism?

Answer 16

• Rule Utilitarianism is where rules are chosen according to their morality/ actions that maximize happiness and minimise pain and you thereby judge your actions according to these rules regardless of how each action performs in its direct influence on the amount of pleasure and pain it causes.

Question 17

advantages of rule utilitarianism to classical utilitarianism

Answer 17

• when you abide by a rule that is made and aimed to maximise happiness, then even if the action itself doesn’t maximise happiness, it is in turn still doing so as the rule itself is still promoting happiness
• saves the individual form having to making a rational decision for every action they take as they just have to abide to the rules.

Question 18

criticisms of rule utilitarianism

Answer 18

• it could lead to adopting rules that benefit the majority of people but at the expense of the minority
• rules shouldnt solely define or justify actions and if good more good can come from breaking rules, it may be considered better to do so.

Question 19

What is utilitarian generalization

Answer 19

assesses and action on the basis of its consequences if it was universally performed rather than its own consequences

Question 20

what is motive utilitarianism

Answer 20

places emphasis on intentions of the actors rather than the consequences of the actions