2 The Principle of Utility According to Bentham

2. The Principle of Utility According to Bentham the rightness of wrongness of an action is determined by its ‘utility’ or ‘usefulness. ’ ‘By the principle of utility it is meant that principle which approves or disapproves of every action whatsoever, according to the tendency which it appears to have to augment or disminish 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. ’ Bentham, 1988. I think the principle of utility is… ‘An action is right if it produces the greatest good for the greatest number. ’ For Bentham good = maximum happiness/pleasure & minimum pain (possible in a given situation).

Principle of Utility explained: What is moral is often expressed as: “the greatest good for the greatest number” Good = happiness or pleasure. So, an act is right or wrong according to the good or bad results that results from the act and the good act is the most pleasurable. Quantitative= focuses on the greatest number. • Simple equation Happiness = pleasure minus pain. 04 September 2021 philosophicalinvestigations. co. uk

Should we follow the principle of utility? 1. What is the trolley problem? 2. What would a Utilitarian, based on the principle of utility, argue you should do in the situation where you have a choice to either flick a switch and kill one person, or allow the train to continue and kill 5 people?

The Trolley Problem… A madman has tied five innocent people to a trolley track. An out of controlley car is careening toward them, and is moments away from running them over. Luckily, you can pull a lever and divert the trolley to another track. The only problem is that the madman has also tied a single person to that track. Considering the circumstances, should you pull the lever?

The Fat Man and the Trolley Problem… The runaway trolley car is hurtling down a track where it will kill five people. You are standing on a bridge above the track and, aware of the imminent disaster, you decide to jump on the track to block the trolley car. Although you will die, the five people will be saved. Just before your leap, you realise that you are too light to stop the trolley. Next to you, a fat man is standing on the very edge of the bridge. He would certainly block the trolley, although he would undoubtedly die from the impact. A small nudge and he would fall right onto the track below. No one would ever know. Should you push him?

Do you agree that right actions are those which benefit the most amount of people? I think that right actions are those which benefit the most amount of people because…(refer to the article we have just read) Another reason I think this is….

Jeremy Bentham 1. The Motivation of Human Beings 2. The Hedonic Calculus 3. The principle of Utility John Stuart Mill Rule Utilitarianism Act Utilitarianism Preference Utilitarianism