Bentham and Kant

What is the name of Jeremy Bentham’s ethical theory?

Utilitarianism

What type of ethical theory is Utilitarianism?

Teleological/consequentialist

What is the focus of Benthams’s Utilitarianism?

Maximising pleasure and minimising pain

Define consequentialist ethics

A type of teleological ethical theory which is based on probable outcomes. The rightness/wrongness of our actions is determined by their consequences.

Define utility

The idea of ‘usefulness’ that we should do whatever is useful in increasing overall good and decreasing overall evil

Who was Jeremy Bentham?

• English philosopher and social reformer (1742-1832)

• An empiricist and consequentialist

• First to systematise utilitarianism and Father of Act Utilitarianism

Finish the quote: “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.”

How does Bentham’s Utilitarianism link to naturalism?

• Naturalism in ethics is the idea that we can discover morality through empirical observations

• We naturally seek pleasure and avoid pain (natural phenomena that can be experienced by humans)

What is Act utilitarianism?

Bentham’s version of utilitarianism

The idea that every action you perform should aim to produce the “greater happiness for the greatest number”

Uses the ‘hedonic calculus’ to measure pleasure and pain

Give 3 criticisms of act utilitarianism

1. It is time-consuming to weigh up pleasure and pain for every decision

2. It is difficult to predict all the consequences of an action

3. It can justify immoral acts if they produce good outcomes

What is the hedonic calculus?

It is a method provided by Bentham to measure the amount of pleasure and pain produced by an action so you can calculate which course of action to take

What 7 factors does the hedonic calculus take into account when making a decision?

• Intensity - how strong is the pleasure or pain?

• Duration - how long will the pleasure or pain last?

• Certainty - how likely is it that the pleasure or pain will actually occur?

• Propinquity - how soon will the pleasure or pain occur?

• Purity - how free is the pleasure from pain?

• Extent - how many people will be affected?

• Fecundity - how likely will it lead to even more pleasure in the future?

What did Bentham describe natural human rights as?

“Nonsense upon stilts”

-as they are not observable so purely theoretical and abstract

Who was John Stuart Mill?

J.S Mill (1806-1873) was a follower of Bentham but thought his version of utilitarianism was too simplistic.

He rejects the hedonic calculus and instead developed ‘Rule Utilitarianism

What aspects of Bentham’s Act Utilitarianism did J.S Mill not support?

• That it focused on the quantity of pleasure rather than its quality

• That it treated all pleasures as equal

• That is could justify immoral acts

Explain J.S Mill’s Rule Utilitarianism

• Argues that we should follow moral rules that generally lead to the greatest happiness

• He believed that not all pleasures are equal. We should prioritise “higher pleasures” (eg knowledge, art, love) over “lower pleasures” (eg eating, drinking, sex)

• Main focus is the quality of pleasure and justice for society

Give 3 strengths of Act utilitarianism

1. Universal - it is easy to understand and apply

2. Flexible and situation based

3. Democratic - everyone’s happiness counts equally

Give 4 weaknesses of Act utilitarianism

1. Can justify immoral acts eg killing

2. Impractical - hedonic calculus too slow and subjective, difficult to accurately predict what will lead to the greatest happiness

3. “Swine ethics” - makes humans behave like pleasure-seeking animals with no higher moral or intellectual purpose

4. Tyranny of the majority - maximises pleasure for the majority which may come at the expense of minority groups

Give 3 strengths of J.S Mill’s Rule utilitarianism

1. Promotes justice and fairness - rules protect individual rights

2. Prevents immoral acts eg killing

3. Provides consistent moral guides - easier to build laws and social norms

Give 3 weaknesses of Rule utilitarianism

1. Difficult to define which rules really maximise happiness across society eg due to cultural differences

2. Rules may clash - if we have to choose based on which act brings more happiness, this is act utilitarianism

3. Too rigid - can become deontological

What type of ethics is Kantian ethics?

Deontological

Finish the quote: “Man must be disciplined…”

“…for by nature he is raw and wild”

Who was Immanuel Kant?

• German philosopher born in 1724

• Key figure in enlightenment

• Had a disciplined daily routine

What did Kant believe?

That there is an absolute moral law that exists and that the absolute moral rules this contains can be worked out by using reason

Why did Kant place an emphasis on reason?

As it is universal, in that everyone has it, it would conceive a more harmonious society compared to faith, as not everyone shares the same faith

How did Kant believe we should make moral decisions?

• Do our duty - by following categorical imperatives

• Feelings, emotions and desires should be excluded

• Possible outcomes are irrelevant

• All that maters is doing your moral duty

Explain Kant’s idea of good will

• Good will is having the good intention to do your duty

• If we have goodwill, we will perform the right action for the right reason

• What matters is that we sincerely aim to do he right thing

Give Kants example to illustrate his idea of good will

• A shopkeeper who lowers their prices out of a sense of fairness to their customers has a good will

• Another shopkeeper might do the same but out of greed to attract more customers does not have a good will

• The difference in intention prevents the greedy shopkeeper from having a good will