Utilitarianism: Jeremy Bentham And John Stuart Mill

How does one decide what is the right decision? Philosophers, and most humans in general, have been debating these questions for centuries and still have not agreed upon any definite answers. In order to effectively debate this question, one must first understand the concept of utilitarianism. In the Fundamentals of Ethics, Russ Shafer-Landau explains this term by saying “utilitarians tell us to do what brings about the best overall situation, by choosing the act that creates the greatest net balance of happiness over unhappiness” (123). In simpler terms, an action is right if they benefit the majority. Consider the case in which you are voting on a bill that, if passed, will enhance the welfare of the majority of the citizenry. For arguments

Although Bentham and Mill were both undoubtedly utilitarian, there are some crucial topics they disagreed on. Jeremy Bentham is an act-utilitarianism, meaning he believes that an act is right if and only if it leads to greater utility (Johnson, “Consequentialism” 4). While Mill is a rule-utilitarianism—he believes that an action is right if and only if it conforms to a general rule which, if followed consistently, leads to greater utility (Johnson, “Consequentialism” 4). More simplistically, it seems as though Bentham would judge an actions morality based on the results of said action, whereas Mill would judge the morality of an action based on the intentions and reasoning for deciding upon such

Mill, and other rule-utilitarians would judge your vote on what precedent you based your vote on. The process for determining social rules begins with carefully describing the rule. Then, one must imagine how a community would be if this rule was accepted and followed by all the citizens in said community. Finally, you must ask the question: will this society be happier if this rule passed as compared to any other laws (Johnson, “Consequentialism” 18). In this situation, you followed the rule of voting for the bill that would most increase the utility of the citizens in your community. Seeing how this rule is essentially the basis of utilitarianism, Mill would view following this rule as morally correct—thus, your action was absolutely moral even though the result was not what you