II. Bentham, Mill, and Utilitarianism

Size: px
Start display at page:

Download "II. Bentham, Mill, and Utilitarianism"

Transcription

1 II. Bentham, Mill, and Utilitarianism Do the ends justify the means? Getting What We Are Due We ended last time (more or less) with the well-known Latin formulation of the idea of justice: suum cuique tribuere to allocate to each his own. Another way of putting that: Justice involves giving each person what he or she is due. It involves how things get distributed But what is to be distributed (what are the relevant distributanda)? 1

2 Distributive Justice Income and wealth; rights and duties; benefits and burdens; powers and opportunities; positions and honours Retributive/Corrective Justice Punishment; restitution; contrition; rehabilitation Three Main Approaches Historically, there have been three main approaches to justice i.e., approaches to distributing the good (and bad) things to which persons are due: 1. Maximizing Welfare 2. Respecting Rights and Freedoms 3. Promoting Virtue 2

3 Justice Ancient and Modern Historically (and in terms of cross-cultural popularity) virtue comes first. For Aristotle, e.g., determining who deserves what depends on first determining the nature of the good life. Determing what virtues (characteristics and dispositions that make life go well for individuals and communities) ought to valued what vices ought to be disvalued. Put in modern terms, justice-as-virtue involves judging people s choices and preferences Modern conceptions of justice (e.g., Kant, Mill, Rawls) by contrast, are founded on respecting rights/freedoms and/or promoting welfare. And note: At least in principle, those goals can be achieved without having to judge people s choices or preferences. Instead, according to modern conceptions, a just society can remain neutral /w/r/t the good life; neutral /w/r/t what constitutes virtue and vice. 3

4 Since its something of pedagogical tradition (and because it has been so tremendously influential in law, public policy, economics, etc.), let s start with the first approach on the list the idea that justice consists in maximizing overall welfare. A Revolution In Morality For our purposes, utilitarianism can be said to have been founded by Jeremy Bentham ( ); developed and refined by John Stuart Mill ( ) Philosophical Radicals : Both Bentham and Mill were active social and political reformers; both wrote and campaigned in aid of legislation (Bentham, penal reform; Mill, women s suffrage, contraception, Irish land reform) 4

5 this practical focus is not accidental. Bentham s major work: Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation (1789). As its title implies, for Bentham, moral philosophy is and ought to be put to use in setting a practical political agenda. Harriet Taylor Mill Mill, for his part, wrote numerous pamphlets on social and political questions and served as an MP. Of particular note, his The Subjection of Women (with Harriet Taylor Mill, 1869) one of the major documents of modern liberal feminism. Classical Utilitarianism (U) in a Nutshell a) Actions are to be judged right or wrong solely by virtue of their consequences; nothing else matters (consequentialism) b) Consequences are to be assessed as good or bad solely in terms of the utility or disutility (pleasure or pain; happiness or unhappiness) created. c) Each person s utility counts and counts equally (egalitarianism) The fundamental normative principle: Maximize utility! (for everyone affected). 5

6 Why Revolutionary? The core idea: An action is morally right (i.e., is at least morally permissible) if it brings about more utility (more happiness, more pleasure) for everyone affected than any other (feasible) alternative action. Its familiar (though potentially self-contradictory) slogan: The greatest happiness of the greatest number Implication: Our happiness matters; everyone s happiness matters. Morality is not given by God or inscribed in eternal abstract rules. It something we can do something about Item: Bentham on Pauper Management Seeing beggars on the street decreases utility tenderhearted people feel the pain of sympathy; hard-hearted people feel the pain of disgust. As for beggars themselves, a few may might actually prefer the mendicant life, but virtually all beggars would be better off if they received adequate food, safe accommodation, medical care, etc. Bentham: So, round em up for the workhouse!... 6

7 Any citizen who notices a beggar is legally empowered to detain him and take him to the nearest workhouse. A 20 shilling reward will help to motivate this prosocial behaviour. Beggars will be well cared for and put to work for wages. They may leave when they have accumulated sufficient funds in their self-liberation account (accrued room and board, life insurance premiums [in case they die before they are paid up] and the 20 shilling reward paid for their capture) Objectivity The bold U claim: We can, in principle, get morals objectively right. How? In order to function as a practical guide to moral questions, the utilitarian reckons, a moral theory must be as objective as possible. Utility is understood to be the sort of thing that we ought to be able ascertain, at least in principle, by observation, measurements, scientific reasoning 7

8 Sidebar: Liberty / Paternalism Mill: Each sane adult is the best judge of what is in her best interests (i.e., what will maximize her utility). Even if that may sometimes seem to be false, how can we be sure that we know any better? Plus, deciding on other people s behalf has disutility of its own, e.g., creating dependency and impeding moral development both of individuals and the community. Implication: U (at least for Mill) is compatible with, indeed, entails, respect for liberty Sidebar: Liberty/Paternalism II But is it true that individuals are objectively the best judges of what is in their interests? Consider: Drug addiction, vaccination, personal finances, monetary policy Accordingly, for some contemporary utilitarians, the theory turns out to be compatible with a fairly high degree of paternalism. 8

9 Utility In general, the term utility stands for whatever is understood to be intrinsically valuable Intrinsically valuable: Valuable as an end, for its own sake Instrumentally valuable: Valuable as a means to obtain something else (e.g., money, possessions) Candidate intrinsically valuable things: Pleasure (Bentham); Happiness/Eudaemonia (Mill); Welfare; Preference satisfaction (some contemporary utilitarians). Equality & Impartiality On any version of utilitarian theory, we are to maximize utility (minimize disutility) for everyone affected in aggregate. Bentham: Each is to count for one, none to count for more than one. Mill: I must again repeat what the assailants of utilitarianism seldom have the justice to acknowledge, that the happiness which forms the utilitarian standard of what is right in conduct is not the agent s own happiness, but that of all concerned. As between others, utilitarianism requires him to be as strictly impartial as a disinterested benevolent spectator. ( Utilitarianism, 76) 9

10 The Case for Utilitarianism The U idea has been enormously influential over the last 200+ years, in philosophy, politics, economics and elsewhere. The attractiveness of the U idea, I d suggest, has a lot to do with precisely those features of the theory that we ve already noted: Objectivity/Non-mysteriousness Equality/Impartiality At least some scope for human freedom Criticisms of U 1. Is Utility All That Matters? Hedonic U (à la Bentham) seems to many to be too narrow, excluding other things we value besides pleasure/the absence of pain. (the pianist s damaged hands; gossip of which the gossipee is unaware) Well, to some degree, Mill tries to address this issue 10

11 Mill: We must broaden our conception of utility from simple pleasure to happiness (eudaemonia, thrivingness ) everything we desire becomes part of happiness. Happiness is a complex phenomenon. it is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied; better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied ( Utilitarianism, 1863, 74) 2. Is U justice what we mean by justice? Retributive Justice: McCloskey s southern sheriff example Distributive Justice: Candy bowl example 11

12 3. Rights Considerations Privacy Rights: Why should the pleasure of a peeping tom count at all? Security Rights: Why should the pleasure of the rapist count at all? In fact, classical Us are typically skeptical about the very idea of rights (Bentham: Nonsense on stilts ). We ve already seen this /w/r/t judicial rights 4. Backward-Looking Reasons Personal Relationships: The benevolent, disinterested spectator would count strangers on an equal basis with friends and family. This seems bizarre or too demanding (But is it really? Consider Peter Singer on people in less developed societies.) Desert Island Promises: If lying/breaking a promise will yield more utility than the truth, and will not create any disutility of its own (but is that ever the case?), then, by AU, these things seem to be morally permissible. 12

Lecture 17 Consequentialism. John Stuart Mill Utilitarianism Mozi Impartial Caring

Lecture 17 Consequentialism. John Stuart Mill Utilitarianism Mozi Impartial Caring Lecture 17 Consequentialism John Stuart Mill Utilitarianism Mozi Impartial Caring 1 Agenda 1. Consequentialism/Utilitarianism 2. John Stuart Mill 1. Lower Order versus Higher Order Pleasures 2. Happiness

More information

Utilitarianism. John Stuart Mill

Utilitarianism. John Stuart Mill Utilitarianism John Stuart Mill Kinds of Moral Theory Character Motive Action Effects Aristotle Kant Rules Utilitarianism Bentham s Arguments Common sense: common sense moral judgments agree with PU Arguments

More information

Consider Ethics: Theory, Readings, and Contemporary Issues Third Edition Bruce N. Waller. Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Consider Ethics: Theory, Readings, and Contemporary Issues Third Edition Bruce N. Waller. Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Consider Ethics: Theory, Readings, and Contemporary Issues Third Edition Bruce N. Waller Chapter 5 Utilitarian Ethics Utilitarian Theory Making Utilitarian Calculations Calculating the right act is not

More information

The Standard of Utility. What makes an action right?

The Standard of Utility. What makes an action right? The Standard of Utility What makes an action right? The Summum Bonum There are few circumstances among those which make up the present condition of human knowledge, more unlike what might have been expected,

More information

Utilitarianism Revision Help Pack

Utilitarianism Revision Help Pack Utilitarianism Revision Help Pack This pack contains focused questions to help you recognize what essential information you need to know for the exam, structured exam style questions to help you understand

More information

Utilitarianism. Utilitarianism. Dr. Clea F. Rees. Centre for Lifelong Learning Cardiff University.

Utilitarianism. Utilitarianism. Dr. Clea F. Rees. Centre for Lifelong Learning Cardiff University. Dr. Clea F. Rees ReesC17@cardiff.ac.uk Centre for Lifelong Learning Cardiff University Autumn 2011 Outline Organisational Quick Start Guide to Historical Development John Stuart Mill The Trolley Problem

More information

Utilitarianism. Utilitarianism. Dr. Clea F. Rees. Centre for Lifelong Learning Cardiff University.

Utilitarianism. Utilitarianism. Dr. Clea F. Rees. Centre for Lifelong Learning Cardiff University. Dr. Clea F. Rees ReesC17@cardiff.ac.uk Centre for Lifelong Learning Cardiff University Spring 2014 Outline Quick Start Guide to Historical Development John Stuart Mill The Trolley Problem I Consequentialism

More information

Utilitarian Ethics and Counselor Decision-Making

Utilitarian Ethics and Counselor Decision-Making 04-Houser.qxd 3/14/2006 7:07 PM Page 25 Chapter 4 Utilitarian Ethics and Counselor Decision-Making Utilitarianism is a Western theory that has a history dating back to the late 1700s (Harris, 2002; Shanahan

More information

J.S. Mill, Utilitarianism (1863)

J.S. Mill, Utilitarianism (1863) J.S. Mill, Utilitarianism (1863) PHIL 102, UBC Christina Hendricks Except parts noted otherwise, this presentation is licensed CC-BY 4.0 John Stuart Mill (1806-1873, England) Mill had a lifelong goal of

More information

John Stuart Mill ( ) Branch: Political philosophy ; Approach: Utilitarianism Over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign

John Stuart Mill ( ) Branch: Political philosophy ; Approach: Utilitarianism Over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign John Stuart Mill (1806 1873) Branch: Political philosophy ; Approach: Utilitarianism Over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign IN CONTEXT BRANCH Political philosophy APPROACH Utilitarianism

More information

Ross s view says that the basic moral principles are about prima facie duties. Ima Rossian

Ross s view says that the basic moral principles are about prima facie duties. Ima Rossian Ima Rossian Ross s view says that the basic moral principles are about prima facie duties. Nonconsequentialism: Some kinds of action (like killing the innocent or breaking your word) are wrong in themselves,

More information

Business Ethics. Lecture Two :: Doing Ethics Utilitarianism - The Consequences. 4BSc IT :: CT436 Sorcha Uí Chonnachtaigh

Business Ethics. Lecture Two :: Doing Ethics Utilitarianism - The Consequences. 4BSc IT :: CT436 Sorcha Uí Chonnachtaigh Business Ethics Lecture Two :: Doing Ethics Utilitarianism - The Consequences 4BSc IT :: CT436 Sorcha Uí Chonnachtaigh Overview Theoretical What is a teleological theory? Utilitarianism: Principle of Utility

More information

Ethics Handout 18 Rawls, Classical Utilitarianism and Nagel, Equality

Ethics Handout 18 Rawls, Classical Utilitarianism and Nagel, Equality 24.231 Ethics Handout 18 Rawls, Classical Utilitarianism and Nagel, Equality The Utilitarian Principle of Distribution: Society is rightly ordered, and therefore just, when its major institutions are arranged

More information

Social Contract Theory

Social Contract Theory Social Contract Theory Social Contract Theory (SCT) Originally proposed as an account of political authority (i.e., essentially, whether and why we have a moral obligation to obey the law) by political

More information

Phil 115, May 24, 2007 The threat of utilitarianism

Phil 115, May 24, 2007 The threat of utilitarianism Phil 115, May 24, 2007 The threat of utilitarianism Review: Alchemy v. System According to the alchemy interpretation, Rawls s project is to convince everyone, on the basis of assumptions that he expects

More information

John Stuart Mill. Table&of&Contents& Politics 109 Exam Study Notes

John Stuart Mill. Table&of&Contents& Politics 109 Exam Study Notes Table&of&Contents& John Stuart Mill!...!1! Marx and Engels!...!9! Mary Wollstonecraft!...!16! Niccolo Machiavelli!...!19! St!Thomas!Aquinas!...!26! John Stuart Mill Background: - 1806-73 - Beyond his proper

More information

What s the Right Thing To Do?

What s the Right Thing To Do? What s the Right Thing To Do? Harvard University s Justice with Michael Sandel Let s start with utilitarianism. According to the principle of utility, we should always do whatever will produce the greatest

More information

Criminal Justice Without Moral Responsibility: Addressing Problems with Consequentialism Dane Shade Hannum

Criminal Justice Without Moral Responsibility: Addressing Problems with Consequentialism Dane Shade Hannum 51 Criminal Justice Without Moral Responsibility: Addressing Problems with Consequentialism Dane Shade Hannum Abstract: This paper grants the hard determinist position that moral responsibility is not

More information

Handout 6: Utilitarianism

Handout 6: Utilitarianism Handout 6: Utilitarianism 1. What is Utilitarianism? Utilitarianism is the theory that says what is good is what makes the world as happy as possible. More precisely, classical utilitarianism is committed

More information

Running Head: The Consequentialism Debate 1. The Consequentialism Debate. Student s Name. Course Name. Course Title. Instructors name.

Running Head: The Consequentialism Debate 1. The Consequentialism Debate. Student s Name. Course Name. Course Title. Instructors name. Running Head: The Consequentialism Debate 1 The Consequentialism Debate Student s Name Course Name Course Title Instructors name Due Date The Consequentialism Debate 2 The Consequentialism Debate The Consequentialist

More information

Chapter Two: Normative Theories of Ethics

Chapter Two: Normative Theories of Ethics Chapter Two: Normative Theories of Ethics This multimedia product and its contents are protected under copyright law. The following are prohibited by law: any public performance or display, including transmission

More information

MGT610 2 nd Quiz solved by Masoodkhan before midterm spring 2012

MGT610 2 nd Quiz solved by Masoodkhan before midterm spring 2012 MGT610 2 nd Quiz solved by Masoodkhan before midterm spring 2012 Which one of the following is NOT listed as virtue in Aristotle s virtue? Courage Humility Temperance Prudence Which philosopher of utilitarianism

More information

Ethical Basis of Welfare Economics. Ethics typically deals with questions of how should we act?

Ethical Basis of Welfare Economics. Ethics typically deals with questions of how should we act? Ethical Basis of Welfare Economics Ethics typically deals with questions of how should we act? As long as choices are personal, does not involve public policy in any obvious way Many ethical questions

More information

Apple Inc. vs FBI A Jurisprudential Approach to the case of San Bernardino

Apple Inc. vs FBI A Jurisprudential Approach to the case of San Bernardino 210 Apple Inc. vs FBI A Jurisprudential Approach to the case of San Bernardino Aishwarya Anand & Rahul Kumar 1 Abstract In the recent technology dispute between FBI and Apple Inc. over the investigation

More information

Chapter 02 Business Ethics and the Social Responsibility of Business

Chapter 02 Business Ethics and the Social Responsibility of Business Chapter 02 Business Ethics and the Social Responsibility of Business TRUEFALSE 1. Ethics can be broadly defined as the study of what is good or right for human beings. 2. The study of business ethics has

More information

Phil 115, June 13, 2007 The argument from the original position: set-up and intuitive presentation and the two principles over average utility

Phil 115, June 13, 2007 The argument from the original position: set-up and intuitive presentation and the two principles over average utility Phil 115, June 13, 2007 The argument from the original position: set-up and intuitive presentation and the two principles over average utility What is the role of the original position in Rawls s theory?

More information

Introduction to Philosophy Philosophy 110W Spring 2012 Russell Marcus

Introduction to Philosophy Philosophy 110W Spring 2012 Russell Marcus Introduction to Philosophy Philosophy 110W Spring 2012 Russell Marcus Class #26 - Consequentialism Wrap-Up Marcus, Introduction to Philosophy, Slide 1 The Three Clauses of Utilitarianism P The creed which

More information

The Forgotten Principles of American Government by Daniel Bonevac

The Forgotten Principles of American Government by Daniel Bonevac The Forgotten Principles of American Government by Daniel Bonevac The United States is the only country founded, not on the basis of ethnic identity, territory, or monarchy, but on the basis of a philosophy

More information

CLASSICAL SCHOOL OF CRIMINOLOGY NONSO ROBERT ATTOH FACULTY OF LAW UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA DEC. 2016

CLASSICAL SCHOOL OF CRIMINOLOGY NONSO ROBERT ATTOH FACULTY OF LAW UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA DEC. 2016 CLASSICAL SCHOOL OF CRIMINOLOGY NONSO ROBERT ATTOH FACULTY OF LAW UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA DEC. 2016 INTRODUCTION The classical school of criminology was developed by the philosophers Cesare Beccaria, an

More information

Bioethics: Autonomy and Health (Fall 2012) Laura Guidry-Grimes

Bioethics: Autonomy and Health (Fall 2012) Laura Guidry-Grimes Bioethics: Autonomy and Health (Fall 2012) Laura Guidry-Grimes Consequentialism Act Rule Utilitarianism Other Hedonist Preference Other Quantitative Qualitative Egoist Universalist 1806-1873 British philosopher

More information

THEORIES OF (DISTRIBUTIVE) JUSTICE

THEORIES OF (DISTRIBUTIVE) JUSTICE THEORIES OF (DISTRIBUTIVE) JUSTICE WHAT, FOR WHOM AND WHY? Kadri Simm, Institute of Philosophy and Semiotics University of Tartu May 22, 2014 in Tallinn CONTENTS What is justice - some definitions and

More information

Session 20 Gerald Dworkin s Paternalism

Session 20 Gerald Dworkin s Paternalism Session 20 Gerald Dworkin s Paternalism Mill s Harm Principle: [T]he sole end for which mankind is warranted, individually or collectively, in interfering with the liberty of action of any of their number,

More information

Chapter 4. Justice and the Law. Justice vs. Law. David Hume. Justice does not dictate a perfect world, but one in which people live up

Chapter 4. Justice and the Law. Justice vs. Law. David Hume. Justice does not dictate a perfect world, but one in which people live up Chapter 4 Justice and the Law Justice vs. Law Law & Justice are very different. Law is often defined as the administration of justice. Law may result in judgments that many feel are unjust Justice: Is

More information

3. Because there are no universal, clear-cut standards to apply to ethical analysis, it is impossible to make meaningful ethical judgments.

3. Because there are no universal, clear-cut standards to apply to ethical analysis, it is impossible to make meaningful ethical judgments. Chapter 2. Business Ethics and the Social Responsibility of Business 1. Ethics can be broadly defined as the study of what is good or right for human beings. LEARNING OBJECTIVES: SRBL.MANN.15.02.01-2.01

More information

Business Law 16th Edition TEST BANK Mallor Barnes Langvardt Prenkert McCrory

Business Law 16th Edition TEST BANK Mallor Barnes Langvardt Prenkert McCrory Business Law 16th Edition TEST BANK Mallor Barnes Langvardt Prenkert McCrory Full download at: https://testbankreal.com/download/business-law-16th-edition-test-bank-mallorbarnes-langvardt-prenkert-mccrory/

More information

I. Identify and or Define. III. Games and Puzzles

I. Identify and or Define. III. Games and Puzzles Studying for the Exam. The best method of studying for the class exams is to (i) review the class notes and readings, (ii) work through the study guide and (iii) review the problems in the lecture notes.

More information

Lecture 7 Act and Rule Utilitarianism. Based on slides 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Pearson Addison-Wesley

Lecture 7 Act and Rule Utilitarianism. Based on slides 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Pearson Addison-Wesley Lecture 7 Act and Rule Utilitarianism Participation Quiz Is she spinning clockwise (A) or counter-clockwise (B)? Imperfect Duties We asked last time: what distinguishes an imperfect duty from something

More information

Consequentialist Ethics

Consequentialist Ethics Consequentialist Ethics Consequentialism Consequentialism in ethics is the view that whether or not an action is good or bad depends solely on what effects that action has on the world. The greatest amount

More information

VII. Aristotle, Virtue, and Desert

VII. Aristotle, Virtue, and Desert VII. Aristotle, Virtue, and Desert Justice as purpose and reward Justice: The Story So Far The framing idea for this course: Getting what we are due. To this point that s involved looking at two broad

More information

The Debate over Utilitarianism

The Debate over Utilitarianism CHAPTER 8 The Debate over Utilitarianism The creed which accepts... the Greatest Happiness Principle... holds that actions are right... as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce

More information

Justice in an Unjust World

Justice in an Unjust World Justice in an Unjust World September 2009 Northwestern University Center for Bioethics Science and Laurie Zoloth, Ph.D Plan of talk: The Health Care Debate Why ethics? Why justice? Not a talk about details

More information

RECONCILING LIBERTY AND EQUALITY: JUSTICE AS FAIRNESS. John Rawls s A Theory of Justice presents a theory called justice as fairness.

RECONCILING LIBERTY AND EQUALITY: JUSTICE AS FAIRNESS. John Rawls s A Theory of Justice presents a theory called justice as fairness. RECONCILING LIBERTY AND EQUALITY: JUSTICE AS FAIRNESS 1. Two Principles of Justice John Rawls s A Theory of Justice presents a theory called justice as fairness. That theory comprises two principles of

More information

DOWNLOAD OR READ : UTILITARIANISM SOLUTIONS MEANING PDF EBOOK EPUB MOBI

DOWNLOAD OR READ : UTILITARIANISM SOLUTIONS MEANING PDF EBOOK EPUB MOBI DOWNLOAD OR READ : UTILITARIANISM SOLUTIONS MEANING PDF EBOOK EPUB MOBI Page 1 Page 2 utilitarianism solutions meaning utilitarianism solutions meaning pdf utilitarianism solutions meaning utilitarianism

More information

POL 343 Democratic Theory and Globalization February 11, "The history of democratic theory II" Introduction

POL 343 Democratic Theory and Globalization February 11, The history of democratic theory II Introduction POL 343 Democratic Theory and Globalization February 11, 2005 "The history of democratic theory II" Introduction Why, and how, does democratic theory revive at the beginning of the nineteenth century?

More information

Poverty--absolute and relative Inequalities of income and wealth

Poverty--absolute and relative Inequalities of income and wealth Development Ethics The task: provide a normative basis for guiding development decisions Development as a historical process Development as the result of policy choices A role for ethics Normative issues

More information

PubPol Values, Ethics, and Public Policy, Fall 2009

PubPol Values, Ethics, and Public Policy, Fall 2009 University of Michigan Deep Blue deepblue.lib.umich.edu 2010-03 PubPol 580 - Values, Ethics, and Public Policy, Fall 2009 Chamberlin, John Chamberlin, J. (2010, March 29). Values, Ethics, and Public Policy.

More information

Distributive Justice Rawls

Distributive Justice Rawls Distributive Justice Rawls 1. Justice as Fairness: Imagine that you have a cake to divide among several people, including yourself. How do you divide it among them in a just manner? If any of the slices

More information

Jeremy Bentham ( )

Jeremy Bentham ( ) Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) His life 1748: born in Spitalfields, London (wealthy Tory family) Prodigy, Latin with 3 1760-66: Oxford, Queen s College 1769: trained as lawyer and called to the Bar, but never

More information

CHAPTER 4, On Liberty. Does Mill Qualify the Liberty Principle to Death? Dick Arneson For PHILOSOPHY 166 FALL, 2006

CHAPTER 4, On Liberty. Does Mill Qualify the Liberty Principle to Death? Dick Arneson For PHILOSOPHY 166 FALL, 2006 1 CHAPTER 4, On Liberty. Does Mill Qualify the Liberty Principle to Death? Dick Arneson For PHILOSOPHY 166 FALL, 2006 In chapter 1, Mill proposes "one very simple principle, as entitled to govern absolutely

More information

Cambridge University Press The Cambridge Rawls Lexicon Edited by Jon Mandle and David A. Reidy Excerpt More information

Cambridge University Press The Cambridge Rawls Lexicon Edited by Jon Mandle and David A. Reidy Excerpt More information A in this web service in this web service 1. ABORTION Amuch discussed footnote to the first edition of Political Liberalism takes up the troubled question of abortion in order to illustrate how norms of

More information

The Industrial Revolution. A new era in human history

The Industrial Revolution. A new era in human history The Industrial Revolution A new era in human history definition The Industrial Revolution is the replacement of human and animal power by other sources Agricultural Revolution Improved farming techniques

More information

Topic 1: Moral Reasoning and ethical theory

Topic 1: Moral Reasoning and ethical theory PROFESSIONAL ETHICS Topic 1: Moral Reasoning and ethical theory 1. Ethical problems in management are complex because of: a) Extended consequences b) Multiple Alternatives c) Mixed outcomes d) Uncertain

More information

VI. Rawls and Equality

VI. Rawls and Equality VI. Rawls and Equality A society of free and equal persons Last time, on Justice: Getting What We Are Due 1 Redistributive Taxation Redux Can we justly tax Wilt Chamberlain to redistribute wealth to others?

More information

BLACKBOARD NOTES ON ON LIBERTY, CHAPTER 1 Philosophy 166 Spring, 2006

BLACKBOARD NOTES ON ON LIBERTY, CHAPTER 1 Philosophy 166 Spring, 2006 1 BLACKBOARD NOTES ON ON LIBERTY, CHAPTER 1 Philosophy 166 Spring, 2006 In chapter 1 of On Liberty Mill states that the problem of liberty has changed its aspect with the emergence of modern democratic

More information

John Rawls THEORY OF JUSTICE

John Rawls THEORY OF JUSTICE John Rawls THEORY OF JUSTICE THE ROLE OF JUSTICE Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought. A theory however elegant and economical must be rejected or revised

More information

RESPONSE TO JAMES GORDLEY'S "GOOD FAITH IN CONTRACT LAW: The Problem of Profit Maximization"

RESPONSE TO JAMES GORDLEY'S GOOD FAITH IN CONTRACT LAW: The Problem of Profit Maximization RESPONSE TO JAMES GORDLEY'S "GOOD FAITH IN CONTRACT LAW: The Problem of Profit Maximization" By MICHAEL AMBROSIO We have been given a wonderful example by Professor Gordley of a cogent, yet straightforward

More information

Utilitarianism. Introduction and Historical Background. The Defining Characteristics of Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism. Introduction and Historical Background. The Defining Characteristics of Utilitarianism Utilitarianism B Eggleston, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA ª 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Glossary Aggregation The view that the value of a state of affairs is determined by summing

More information

T1 INTRODUCTION... 7 WHAT IS IT?... 7 TYPES... 7 THE RULE OF LAW...

T1 INTRODUCTION... 7 WHAT IS IT?... 7 TYPES... 7 THE RULE OF LAW... JURISPRUDENCE Table of Contents T1 INTRODUCTION... 7 WHAT IS IT?... 7 TYPES... 7 THE RULE OF LAW... 8 DICEY- 3 PRINCIPLES... 8 MODERN APPROACHES... 8 WHAT IS THE POINT OF LEGAL THEORY?... 9 T2 NATURAL

More information

Social and Political Philosophy

Social and Political Philosophy Schedule Social and Political Philosophy Philosophy 33 Fall 2006 Wednesday, 30 August OVERVIEW I have two aspirations for this course. First, I would like to cover what the major texts in political philosophy

More information

Economic Thought of J B Say and J S Mill Episode 10

Economic Thought of J B Say and J S Mill Episode 10 Economic Thought of J B Say and J S Mill Episode 10 Module - 1 Economic Thought of J B Say and J S Mill J.B. Say and J.S.Mill. both were also part of the socialists who had given there economic thoughts

More information

Chapter 02 Business Ethics

Chapter 02 Business Ethics Business Law and the Regulation of Business 12th Edition Mann TEST BANK Full clear download (no formatting errors) at: https://testbankreal.com/download/business-law-regulation-business-12thedition-mann-test-bank/

More information

University of Alberta

University of Alberta University of Alberta Rawls and the Practice of Political Equality by Jay Makarenko A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

More information

Introduction to Equality and Justice: The Demands of Equality, Peter Vallentyne, ed., Routledge, The Demands of Equality: An Introduction

Introduction to Equality and Justice: The Demands of Equality, Peter Vallentyne, ed., Routledge, The Demands of Equality: An Introduction Introduction to Equality and Justice: The Demands of Equality, Peter Vallentyne, ed., Routledge, 2003. The Demands of Equality: An Introduction Peter Vallentyne This is the second volume of Equality and

More information

I. Identify and or Define. III. Diagrams, Games, and Puzzles. II. Matching exercise: link the following philosophers with their ideas.

I. Identify and or Define. III. Diagrams, Games, and Puzzles. II. Matching exercise: link the following philosophers with their ideas. Studying for the Exam. The best method of studying for the class exams is to (i) review the class notes and readings, (ii) work through the study guide and (iii) review the problems in the lecture notes.

More information

Dr. Mohammad O. Hamdan

Dr. Mohammad O. Hamdan Dr. Mohammad O. Hamdan Ethical Theories Based on Philosophical Scholarship: 1) Utilitarianism (actions are right if they are useful or for the benefit of a majority) 2) Rights Ethics 3) Duty Ethics 4)

More information

On Liberty (Hackett Classics) PDF

On Liberty (Hackett Classics) PDF On Liberty (Hackett Classics) PDF Contents include a selected bibliography and an editor's Introduction broken into two sections. The first section provides a brief sketch of the historical, social, and

More information

Utility, Character, and Mill's Argument for Representative Government

Utility, Character, and Mill's Argument for Representative Government Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Philosophy Theses Department of Philosophy 8-7-2012 Utility, Character, and Mill's Argument for Representative Government Paul Vickery Georgia

More information

I. Setting the Stage for the Nineteenth Century

I. Setting the Stage for the Nineteenth Century I. Setting the Stage for the Nineteenth Century Moral Foundations of Capitalism: Chapter 5 In 1800, many features of the medieval order remained in Europe, in spite of changes in ethics, economics, and

More information

enforce people s contribution to the general good, as everyone naturally wants to do productive work, if they can find something they enjoy.

enforce people s contribution to the general good, as everyone naturally wants to do productive work, if they can find something they enjoy. enforce people s contribution to the general good, as everyone naturally wants to do productive work, if they can find something they enjoy. Many communist anarchists believe that human behaviour is motivated

More information

AN EGALITARIAN THEORY OF JUSTICE 1

AN EGALITARIAN THEORY OF JUSTICE 1 AN EGALITARIAN THEORY OF JUSTICE 1 John Rawls THE ROLE OF JUSTICE Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought. A theory however elegant and economical must be

More information

On Original Appropriation. Peter Vallentyne, University of Missouri-Columbia

On Original Appropriation. Peter Vallentyne, University of Missouri-Columbia On Original Appropriation Peter Vallentyne, University of Missouri-Columbia in Malcolm Murray, ed., Liberty, Games and Contracts: Jan Narveson and the Defence of Libertarianism (Aldershot: Ashgate Press,

More information

24.03: Good Food 3/13/17. Justice and Food Production

24.03: Good Food 3/13/17. Justice and Food Production 1. Food Sovereignty, again Justice and Food Production Before when we talked about food sovereignty (Kyle Powys Whyte reading), the main issue was the protection of a way of life, a culture. In the Thompson

More information

Political Science Legal Studies 217 IMPACT OF LAW

Political Science Legal Studies 217 IMPACT OF LAW Political Science Legal Studies 217 IMPACT OF LAW Functions of Law Establish relations between government and the people Powers of government Enunciate rights of the people Allocate social & economic resources

More information

A conception of human rights is meant to play a certain role in global political

A conception of human rights is meant to play a certain role in global political Comments on Human Rights A conception of human rights is meant to play a certain role in global political argument (in what Rawls calls the public reason of the society of peoples ): principles of human

More information

Do we have a strong case for open borders?

Do we have a strong case for open borders? Do we have a strong case for open borders? Joseph Carens [1987] challenges the popular view that admission of immigrants by states is only a matter of generosity and not of obligation. He claims that the

More information

POLITICAL SCIENCE PAPER: INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL THEORY LESSON: JUSTICE LESSON DEVELOPER KSHETRIMAYUM SUBARTA SINGH DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

POLITICAL SCIENCE PAPER: INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL THEORY LESSON: JUSTICE LESSON DEVELOPER KSHETRIMAYUM SUBARTA SINGH DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE 1 POLITICAL SCIENCE PAPER: INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL THEORY LESSON: JUSTICE LESSON DEVELOPER KSHETRIMAYUM SUBARTA SINGH DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE SHYAMA PRASAD MUKHERJEE COLLEGE DELHI UNIVERSITY

More information

Paternalism. But, what about protecting people FROM THEMSELVES? This is called paternalism :

Paternalism. But, what about protecting people FROM THEMSELVES? This is called paternalism : Paternalism 1. Paternalism vs. Autonomy: Plausibly, people should not be free to do WHATEVER they want. For, there are many things that people might want to do that will harm others e.g., murder, rape,

More information

Subverting the Orthodoxy

Subverting the Orthodoxy Subverting the Orthodoxy Rousseau, Smith and Marx Chau Kwan Yat Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Adam Smith, and Karl Marx each wrote at a different time, yet their works share a common feature: they display a certain

More information

MGT610 Quiz Conference and solved by Masood khan before midterm spring 2012

MGT610 Quiz Conference and solved by Masood khan before midterm spring 2012 MGT610 Quiz Conference and solved by Masood khan before midterm spring 2012 The three major types of ethical issues include except? Communication issues Systematic issues Corporate issues Individual issues

More information

Individualism. Marquette University. John B. Davis Marquette University,

Individualism. Marquette University. John B. Davis Marquette University, Marquette University e-publications@marquette Economics Faculty Research and Publications Economics, Department of 1-1-2009 John B. Davis Marquette University, john.davis@marquette.edu Published version.

More information

C H A P T E R THEORETICAL BACKGROUND. certain theories, which have been developed by persons of legal authorities

C H A P T E R THEORETICAL BACKGROUND. certain theories, which have been developed by persons of legal authorities C H A P T E R III THEORETICAL BACKGROUND Theoretical background shows how a research is based on or contributing to the existing theory. The present study is also based on certain theories, which have

More information

Criminal Procedure. 8 th Edition Joel Samaha. Wadsworth Publishing

Criminal Procedure. 8 th Edition Joel Samaha. Wadsworth Publishing Criminal Procedure 8 th Edition Joel Samaha Wadsworth Publishing Crime Control in a Constitutional Democracy Chapter 1 Constitutional Democracy We live in a constitutional democracy, where neither a single

More information

Assignment to make up for missed class on August 29, 2011 due to Irene

Assignment to make up for missed class on August 29, 2011 due to Irene SS141-3SA Macroeconomics Assignment to make up for missed class on August 29, 2011 due to Irene Read pages 442-445 (copies attached) of Mankiw's "The Political Philosophy of Redistributing Income". Which

More information

Jason T. Eberl, Ph.D. Semler Endowed Chair for Medical Ethics College of Osteopathic Medicine Marian University

Jason T. Eberl, Ph.D. Semler Endowed Chair for Medical Ethics College of Osteopathic Medicine Marian University Jason T. Eberl, Ph.D. Semler Endowed Chair for Medical Ethics College of Osteopathic Medicine Marian University Affiliate Faculty Indiana University Center for Bioethics Fairbanks Center for Medical Ethics,

More information

IMPARTIAL JUSTICE: CONDITIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

IMPARTIAL JUSTICE: CONDITIONS AND IMPLICATIONS IMPARTIAL JUSTICE: CONDITIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Kaisa Herne Institutions in Context: Inequality Workshop 2013, Tampere OUTLINE OF THE PRESENTATION 1. Main questions 2. Definition of impartiality 3. Type

More information

Meena Krishnamurthy a a Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, Associate

Meena Krishnamurthy a a Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, Associate This article was downloaded by: [Meena Krishnamurthy] On: 20 August 2013, At: 10:48 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer

More information

S.L. Hurley, Justice, Luck and Knowledge, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2003), 341 pages. ISBN: (hbk.).

S.L. Hurley, Justice, Luck and Knowledge, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2003), 341 pages. ISBN: (hbk.). S.L. Hurley, Justice, Luck and Knowledge, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2003), 341 pages. ISBN: 0-674-01029-9 (hbk.). In this impressive, tightly argued, but not altogether successful book,

More information

Definition: Institution public system of rules which defines offices and positions with their rights and duties, powers and immunities p.

Definition: Institution public system of rules which defines offices and positions with their rights and duties, powers and immunities p. RAWLS Project: to interpret the initial situation, formulate principles of choice, and then establish which principles should be adopted. The principles of justice provide an assignment of fundamental

More information

Essential Question: How did both the government and workers themselves try to improve workers lives?

Essential Question: How did both the government and workers themselves try to improve workers lives? Essential Question: How did both the government and workers themselves try to improve workers lives? The Philosophers of Industrialization Rise of Socialism Labor Unions and Reform Laws The Reform Movement

More information

Repetition on Virtue Ethics. Virtue Ethics. The Seven Virtues

Repetition on Virtue Ethics. Virtue Ethics. The Seven Virtues PROFESSIONAL ETHICS IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING CDT409 LECTURE 4 Utilitarianism, Rights, Justice Gordana Dodig-Crnkovic Department of Computer Science and Engineering Mälardalen University 2007 Repetition

More information

Can Negative Utilitarianism be Salvaged?

Can Negative Utilitarianism be Salvaged? Can Negative Utilitarianism be Salvaged? Erich Rast erich@snafu.de IFILNOVA Institute of Philosophy, Universidade Nova de Lisboa 5. October 2014 Overview 1 Classical Negative Utilitarianism and Smart s

More information

Governing Sport Morally through Policy Grounded in Utilitarianism

Governing Sport Morally through Policy Grounded in Utilitarianism The College at Brockport: State University of New York Digital Commons @Brockport Kinesiology, Sport Studies and Physical Education Faculty Publications Kinesiology, Sport Studies and Physical Education

More information

Normative Frameworks 1 / 35

Normative Frameworks 1 / 35 Normative Frameworks 1 / 35 Goals of this part of the course What are the goals of public policy? What do we mean by good public policy? Three approaches 1. Philosophical: Normative political theory 2.

More information

Aggregation and the Separateness of Persons

Aggregation and the Separateness of Persons Aggregation and the Separateness of Persons Iwao Hirose McGill University and CAPPE, Melbourne September 29, 2007 1 Introduction According to some moral theories, the gains and losses of different individuals

More information

David A. Reidy, J.D., Ph.D. University of Tennessee

David A. Reidy, J.D., Ph.D. University of Tennessee 92 AUSLEGUNG Jeff Spinner, The Boundaries of Citizenship: Race, Ethnicity, and Nationality in the Liberal State, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1994,230 pp. David A. Reidy, J.D., Ph.D.

More information

Consequentialism the family of ethical

Consequentialism the family of ethical American Philosophical Quarterly Volume 47, Number 4, October 2010 Supererogation for Utilitarianism Jean-Paul Vessel I. Introduction Consequentialism the family of ethical theories sharing the characteristic

More information

JUSTICE, NON-VIOLENCE, AND THE PRACTICE OF POLITICAL JUDGMENT: A STUDY OF RICOEUR S CONCEPTION OF JUSTICE YANG-SOO LEE

JUSTICE, NON-VIOLENCE, AND THE PRACTICE OF POLITICAL JUDGMENT: A STUDY OF RICOEUR S CONCEPTION OF JUSTICE YANG-SOO LEE JUSTICE, NON-VIOLENCE, AND THE PRACTICE OF POLITICAL JUDGMENT: A STUDY OF RICOEUR S CONCEPTION OF JUSTICE By YANG-SOO LEE (Under the Direction of CLARK WOLF) ABSTRACT In his recent works, Paul Ricoeur

More information

2007 Thomson/West. No Claim to Orig. U.S. Govt. Works.

2007 Thomson/West. No Claim to Orig. U.S. Govt. Works. American Society of International Law Proceedings April 2-5, 2003 *181 SOME REFLECTIONS ON JUSTICE IN A GLOBALIZING WORLD Judge Hisashi Owada [FNa1] Copyright 2003 by American Society of International

More information

Any non-welfarist method of policy assessment violates the Pareto principle: A comment

Any non-welfarist method of policy assessment violates the Pareto principle: A comment Any non-welfarist method of policy assessment violates the Pareto principle: A comment Marc Fleurbaey, Bertil Tungodden September 2001 1 Introduction Suppose it is admitted that when all individuals prefer

More information

POLI 101: September 3, Lecture #4: Liberalism and its Critics

POLI 101: September 3, Lecture #4: Liberalism and its Critics POLI 101: September 3, 2014 Lecture #4: Liberalism and its Critics John Stuart Mill 1806-1873 English philosopher and economist Marries Harriet Taylor in 1851 On Liberty (1859) The Subjection of Women

More information