Utilitarianism

Jeremy Bentham-England (1748-1832): Utilitarian

Principle

An action is right from an ethical point of view if the sum total of

utilities produced by that act is greater than the sum total of
utilities produced by any other act the person could have
performed at that situation

This principle assumes that positive and negative benefits can be

somehow measured

To do in a particular situation:

Determine possible alternative actions that are available/possible

Estimate the direct and indirect benefits

Choose the alternative that has greatest sum of utility

Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism matches with views of majority

Is an intuitive criteria employed by people when

discussing moral conduct

Governments use utilitarianism principles in their

economic and welfare policies (social cost-benefit
analysis)

Problems of measurement:

Difficult to know whether the utility would be maximised by one

giving out or the other receiving it or trading or exchanging

Difficult to mesasure like value of life

Predictability of result from an action

What is to count as benefit and what as cost (funding pubs!)

Utilitarianism

Utilitarian reply to measurement objection:

Consequences to be sufficiently measured to help

comparison and impartially weighted against each
other

Several common-sense criteria can be used

Weigh goods based on needs (basic) and wants

Measure in terms of monetary equivalents of similar

elements

Utilitarians argue that every one puts an implicit

price for his/her life while taking decisions affecting
his life

Concept of a Right

Individual's entitlement to something

If the entitlement is derived from a legal system, it is called a

legal right

Entitlements can also derive from a system of moral

standards; such rights are called moral rights or human rights

Rights are powerful devices, in the sence that it may

authorise a person to do whatever not specified in law or
morality

Moral rights are tightly correlated with duties

Moral rights provide individuals with autonomy and equality in

free pursuit of their interests

Moral rights provide a basis for justifying one's action

Negative and Positive Rights

Negative rights is distinguished by its type like

privacy, which others can not interfere; includes the
right to destroy personal property by himself

Positive rights do more than impose negative

rights. They imply that some other agents have to
provide them

Clean environment

Healthy food

Opportunity to education

Rights and Duties

Walmart and the 'pajamas'

Microsoft and China operations

UN Declaration of Human Rights:

Right to own property alone and with association of

others

Right to work, free choice of employment,

favourable conditions etc

Right to just and favourable remuneration

Right to form and join trade unions

Right to rest and leisure, limitation on working hours

Contractual Rights and

Duties

Also called special rights and duties or special obligations

Come with limited rights and correlative duties

Attached to specific individuals; between particular individuals

and depends on a publicly accepted system of rules

Both parties entering into a contract have full knowledge of

nature of agreement

Neither party to a contract must intentionally misrepresent

the facts of the contract situation

Neither party to the contract must be forced to enter the

contract under duress or coercion

The contract must not bind the parties to an immoral act

Rights and Justice

Utilitarian principle implies that certain

actions are morally right but or unjust
or violate people's rights

Utilitarianism can go wrong in cases

involving social justice: majority of
society members want to enjoy cheap
vegetables denying those producing
them a better wages

Rights and Justice

Rule utilitarian: Do not suppose that a particular

action will produce the greatest amount of utility

An action is right from an ethical point of view if and

only if the action would be required by those moral
rules that are correct

A moral value is correct if and only if the sum of total

utilities produced if everyone were to follow that rule
is greater than the sum total utilites produced if
everyone were to follow some alternative rule

If a rule allows people to make an exception

whenever an exception will maximize utility

Kant's Categorical
Imperatives

Immanuel Kant German (1724-1804)

Everyone should be treated as a free person equal

to everyone else

First Formulation of Categorical Imperative:

An action is morally right for a person in a certain situation

if, and only if, the person's reason for carrying out the
action is a reason that he or she would be willing to have
every person act on,in any similar situation

Do unto others as you would have them to unto you

Kant's Categorical
Imperatives

Second Formulation of Categorical Imperative:

An action is morally right for a person if, and only if, in

performing the action, the person does not use others merely
as a means for advancing his or her own interests, but also
both respects and develops their capacity to choose freely for
themselves

Kantian Rigths:

Have positive rights to work, food, clothing , housing and

medical care

Have negative rights freedom of speech, thought, association

and right to privacy

Have a contracual right to what they have been promised in

contracts

Limitations of Kantianism

Whether one would be willing to have everyone

follow a certain policy

Which right to be limited in favour of others? (noise

disturbing others)

'Reversability' Racial discrimination

Kantianism vs Utilitarianism

In the system of utilitrianism, the end justifies the

means and actions are judged on the results not on
the intentions or motives

In Kantianism, the motive is important and not the

end results

Utilitarianism is one of the building blocks of

democratic system; Kantinism believes that
democracy overlooks the minorities and individuals

Kantianism argues that any action can not be moral

unless the motives are moral

Kantianism vs Utilitarianism
Kantianism
Ethically relevant feature of
an act
Its motive
Basic value

Autonomy

Ethical imperative

Respect autonomy

Choices evaluated from

Test for ethical correctness

Chooser's point of
view
Categorical
imperative

Utilitarianism
Its consequences
Pleasure/happiness
Promote
pleasure/happiness
Impersonal point of view
Utility calculation