Exploring Utilitarianism: A Comparative Analysis

What is utilitarianism? Through philosophy, John Stuart Mill aims to answer this question. He asserts that one’s actions must be right if the greatest number of individuals are pleased with the greatest good. The theory of utilitarianism is straightforward. One must always chose the action that will contribute to the greatest good. In any instance, one must chose the action that will promote the greatest good for the greatest number. This principle allows one to decipher any action that may be considered right or wrong. On the contrary, Immanuel Kant and Kwame Appiah challenge the method of utilitarianism as a means to determine which rights countries should enforce. Kant asserts that human rights are individual and universal, whereas Appiah focuses on cosmopolitanism.

The ethical theory of utilitarianism has one basis, one must chose the action that will contribute to the greatest good; the greatest good for the greatest number. In any instance one may ask, which action will make the most people happy and how long? As a method

Mill asserts that the one’s actions must be right if the greatest number of individuals are pleased with the greatest good. Kant and Appiah challenge the method of utilitarianism as a means to determine which rights countries should enforce. Kant asserts that human rights are individual and universal, whereas Appiah focuses on cosmopolitanism. Kant opposes this view stating that human rights are individual. Essentially, one cannot categorize one’s human rights by the extent to which they appeal to the greatest good. Appiah opposes the approach of Mill of ranking countries in the order of morality. He believes that there is no “pure” culture and ranking countries in order of morality is a threat; every country is engulfed in a tradition of another country. One can conclude that a compromise must be met between an individual’s rights and the rights pertaining to a