Arguments Against Utilitarianism

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Introduction Ethics is a broad branch of philosophy which deals with the moral behavior. In this regard, actions are classified according to the consequences they result to, internal characteristics as well as the character exhibited by the actions in the end. Three ethical systems are used to judge actions between the wrong and the right. I will concentrate on utilitarianism that is widely used over the world. Utilitarianism “The utilitarianism theory states that the best moral action is the one that maximizes utility. Actions are viewed to be right if only they promote happiness” (Mill, 2010. page 17). On the other hand, actions are considered to be wrong if they lead to anger and unhappiness to an individual. “The theory aims at right actions that give pleasure to individuals while making sure they are free from pain”, (Mill, 2010. page 22). Utilitarianism is divided into two categories: “(1) Rule-utilitarianism in which the primary goal of the utilitarian individual is to ensure that everyone is happy. (2) Act utilitarianism in which individuals should undertake actions with the best result” (Rosen, 2005. page 31). In my opinion, pleasure is considered to be the peak of life in this theory. Arguments for Utilitarianism …show more content…

I will begin by looking at the first claim that states that the consequential nature of utilitarianism is inappropriate. According to this argument, actions are judged according to the resulting consequences on the individual who undertook the actions without considering who motivated the actions. I will argue that this claim is wrong. This is because if the actions are morally up right, they will also produce the best consequences compared to any other actions. In my opinion utilitarianism is effective in shaping the behavioral character of the society as maximization of the good actions as well as minimization of evil deeds is

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