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Let me explain
The core principles of utilitarianism are quite straightforward. Firstly, utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory. Consequentialists hold that the morality of an action is solely determined by the action’s consequences. Given a range of possible actions, the right action is the one that produces the best possible consequences. But this leads to the question of what counts as good or bad consequences. According to classical utilitarianism, good consequences mean the promotion of happiness, while bad consequences are the production of unhappiness (Mill, 2015, p.155). An action produces the best possible consequences if it creates “the greatest balance of happiness over unhappiness” (Bennett, 2015, p.55). Here, I do not wish to wade into the deep water of what counts as happiness and how it is measured, though the difficulties involved with measuring happiness could indeed develop into a noteworthy objection to utilitarianism. For now, it is sufficient to take the meaning and measurement of happiness at an intuitive level. Lastly, whose happiness does utilitarianism take into account? Classical utilitarianism views the welfare of all sentient beings equally and impartially. The happiness of any person is as important as the happiness of any other person, regardless of their class, race, social relationship, etc. In sum, classical utilitarianism holds that given a range of possible actions, the morally right action is the action that maximizes net total happiness—which is the amount of total happiness minus the amount of total unhappiness—of every sentient being.
The core principles of utilitarianism are quite straightforward. Firstly, utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory. Consequentialists hold that the morality of an action is solely determined by the action’s consequences. Given a range of possible actions, the right action is the one that produces the best possible consequences. But this leads to the question of what counts as good or bad consequences. According to classical utilitarianism, good consequences mean the promotion of happiness, while bad consequences are the production of unhappiness (Mill, 2015, p.155). An action produces the best possible consequences if it creates “the greatest balance of happiness over unhappiness” (Bennett, 2015, p.55). Here, I do not wish to wade into the deep water of what counts as happiness and how it is measured, though the difficulties involved with measuring happiness could indeed develop into a noteworthy objection to utilitarianism. For now, it is sufficient to take the meaning and measurement of happiness at an intuitive level. Lastly, whose happiness does utilitarianism take into account? Classical utilitarianism views the welfare of all sentient beings equally and impartially. The happiness of any person is as important as the happiness of any other person, regardless of their class, race, social relationship, etc. In sum, classical utilitarianism holds that given a range of possible actions, the morally right action is the action that maximizes net total happiness—which is the amount of total happiness minus the amount of total unhappiness—of every sentient being.