Assess the merits of Utilitarianism (24 Marks)
Utilitarianism is a theory aimed at defining one simple basis that can be applied when making any ethical decision. It is based on a human's natural instinct to seek pleasure and avoid pain.
Jeremy Bentham is widely regarded as the father of utilitarianism. He was born in 1748 into a family of lawyers and was himself, training to join the profession. During this process however, he became disillusioned by the state British law was in and set out to reform the system into a perfect one based on the ?Greatest Happiness Principle,' ?the idea that pleasurable consequences are what qualify an action as being morally good'. Bentham observed that we are all governed by pain and pleasure; we all naturally aim to seek pleasure and avoid pain. He then decided that the best moral principle for governing our lives is one which uses this, the ?Greatest Happiness Principle.' This is that the amount of overall happiness or unhappiness that is caused by an action should determine whether an action is right or wrong. He stated,
?the greatest happiness of all those whose interest is in question is the right and proper, and only right and proper end of human action'
Here Bentham is saying that the principle is the only valid of deciding and justifying our actions, that the principle should be applied regardless of any others, as it is the only true and reliable way of defining whether an action is right or wrong. An advantage of utilitarianism is that it can be applied to any situation. Unlike many moral approaches you are not restricted by rules such as ?it is always wrong to lie,' or ?killing is never right.' This allows the philosopher to consider any dilemma or problem in it's own specific context. For example applying Kan ...