On your whiteboard: List the strengths and weaknesses of act utilitarianism

Weaknesses of Bentham: Calculation Rights Relationships Pleasure

John Stuart Mill Kept basic utilitarian idea (principle of utility – do whatever has the best consequences for the most people) But the ‘best consequences’ doesn’t just mean the most pleasurable. Some of the counter-intuitive results Bentham’s formula gives are down to the equal consideration he gives to all pleasures. He says pleasure is the sole intrinsic good. He measures pleasure quantitatively. But according to Mill, not all pleasures are equal. Some should count for more and some for less. He measures pleasure qualitatively.

Think… Of all the things people could get pleasure from, which do you think should be counted more and less?

Mill’s answer – higher and lower pleasures Higher = intellectual, emotional, spiritual Lower = physical Are these higher or lower? Eating a cake Baking a cake Watching football Playing football Doing yoga Beating someone up

Criticism of higher and lower pleasures: Problem: are higher pleasures really better? Mill's response: if you've known both you'll see that higher is best. Problem with this? Pleasure is no longer the sole intrinsic good. Mill has introduced another factor into the calculation, which needs justifying.

Weaknesses of Bentham: Calculation Rights Relationships Pleasure

Rule Utilitarianism Instead of calculating the pleasure caused by each individual action, you make rules based on which sorts of actions generally cause the most pleasure. Eg. killing people usually causes more pain than the alternatives, so "don't kill" could be a rule. Or "keep your promises".

How does rule utilitarianism work?

Weaknesses of Bentham: Calculation Rights Relationships Pleasure

Problems with Rule Utilitarianism Calculation (still!) Ignores motives/ character - response: good motives tend to cause more happiness - counter: motives seem to be good not just because they cause more happiness, but because they're good in themselves.

You should now know: Why Mill wanted to adapt Bentham’s theory. What he meant by higher and lower pleasures. How rule utilitarianism works. How far each of these aspects improves on Act Utilitarianism.