On Utilitarianism and Kantian Ethics

1357 Words3 Pages

1. Introduction
(Beginning unfinished) In this paper, I will introduce two arguments against Classical Utilitarianism and explain why they are compelling and tenable objections. I will then anticipate how a non-utilitarian Consequentialist might try to avoid these problems. In the last section, I will use the example of poverty relief to explain why Kantian Ethics immunes from the harsh criticisms faced by Utilitarian.
2. Two Objections to Classical Utilitarianism
Classical Utilitarianism is the doctrine that an act is morally right if and only if it maximizes overall (actual or expected) utility, and each person’s utility is counted impartially in the calculation. The last part of this definition implies that people are morally bound to be absolutely impartial in all their actions, and such implication is problematic.
(1) The Charge that Classical Utilitarianism is Too-Demanding
One popular objection to Classical Utilitarianism is that it is too demanding. Suppose person A has two choices to spend her weekend: she can either watch movies at home, or work at an NGO to save vulnerable people from suffering. According to Classical Utilitarianism, this person is morally obligated, not simply encouraged, to take the latter choice and to work as many hours as she can, because the overall reduction in pain of those suffering far exceeds the utility gained by this person from watching movies. Similarly, person B is morally required to resign from his own job if his doing so results in someone else’s greater amount of happiness gained from having the job. In these contexts, Classical Utilitarianism is too demanding in that it demands more of people than they have sufficient reasons to give. In other words, the doctrine demands people to...

... middle of paper ...

... not condemn such action. Kant would conclude that behaviors such as buying a movie ticket are unintentional actions that are neutral in moral status. After all, unintentional action is associated with neither good nor bad intentions, and is neither praiseworthy nor condemnable.
Kantian approach to poverty problem is also less demanding in terms of scale. There are millions of poor people living in hundreds of different countries, and Utilitarianism requires us to continue offer our help until every single of them no longer suffers from poverty. Kantian ethics is not that demanding. As long as one has a good will and incorporates that will into his action, no matter how much contributions he ends up making, he has done something morally good.

Works Cited

Mill, John Stuart. "What Utilitarianism Is." Utilitarianism. Raleigh, N.C.: Alex Catalogue, 199. 17. Print.

Open Document