Jeremy Bentham s An Introduction to the Principles of Morals & Legislation. Benjamin Visscher Hole IV

Transcription

1 Jeremy Bentham s An Introduction to the Principles of Morals & Legislation Benjamin Visscher Hole IV

2 Jeremy Bentham ( ) Bentham today He is stuffed, and on display at UC London. He still attends faculty meetings, but does not vote.

3 Jeremy Bentham ( ) Hedonistic Utilitarian Utils = df the basic units of pleasure Bentham makes a calculus for maximizing utils. Pleasures and pains differ by quantity only, not quality.

4 An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation Bentham's hedonism Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure. Descriptive claim: All actions are motivated solely by considerations of pleasure and pain. Normative claim: What we ought to do depends solely on considerations of pleasure and pain. The principle of utility That principle which approves or disapproves of every action whatsoever, according to the tendency which it appears to have to augment or diminish the happiness of the party whose interest is in question.

5 Bentham vs. Kant Bentham s source of moral salience: sentience Kant s source of moral salience: agency

6 Discussion Question Suppose you had the opportunity to have someone else make all of your decisions for you for the rest of your life. Suppose further that this person knows you so incredibly well that her decisions are guaranteed to make you happier in the long term than you would be if you made your own decisions. Would you accept such an arrangement? Why or why not? What does this case tell us about the plausibility of hedonism?

7 An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation Arguing for the principle of utility The principle of utility cannot be directly proven: That which is used to prove every thing else, cannot itself be proved: a chain of proofs must have their commencement somewhere. But considerations can be raised in its favor Arguments for other principles often seem to rely on the principle of utility. Other ethical theories face considerable problems. Is this an acceptable case for the principle?

8 An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation Four sources of pain and pleasure 1. Physical: Arising from the ordinary course of nature, not from any human action. 2. Political: Arising from the actions of some judge. 3. Moral: Arising from persons in the community. 4. Religious: Arising from the hand of a superior invisible being.

9 Jeremy Bentham: An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation Measuring Pain and Pleasure Pains and pleasures differ in Duration Intensity Certainty or uncertainty Propinquity or remoteness Fecundity (likelihood of bringing about sensations of the same kind) Purity (likelihood of bringing about sensations of the opposite kind)

10 How do we decide what to do? We can calculate a number attached to the pain or pleasure of any given option. Bentham gives us a felicific calculus: To a number of persons, with reference to each of whom to the value of a pleasure or a pain is considered, it will be greater or less, according to seven circumstances: to wit, the six preceding ones; viz. 1. Its intensity. 2. Its duration. 3. Its certainty or uncertainty. 4. Its propinquity or remoteness. 5. Its fecundity. 6. Its purity. And one other; to wit: 7. Its extent; that is, the number of persons to whom it extends; or (in other words) who are affected by it

11 How do we decide what to do? We can calculate a number attached to the pain or pleasure of any given option. Bentham gives us a felicific calculus: Intense, long, certain, speedy, fruitful, pure - Such marks in pleasures and in pains endure. Such pleasures seek if private be thy end: If it be public, wide let them extend. Such pains avoid, whichever be thy view: If pains must come, let them extend to few.

12 Features of Bentham s utilitarianism (1) Value is a sensation; all the things we value are, in fact, reducible to sensory experience.

13 Features of Bentham s utilitarianism (1) Value is a sensation; all the things we value are, in fact, reducible to sensory experience. Reductionism Fetishism Argument

14 Features of Bentham s utilitarianism (2) Pleasures are homogeneous with respect to value.

15 Features of Bentham s utilitarianism (2) Pleasures are homogeneous with respect to value. There are no higher or lower pleasures There are no bad pleasures Pleasures are both Measureable & Commensurable

16 Features of Bentham s utilitarianism (2) Pleasures are homogeneous with respect to value.

17 Features of Bentham s utilitarianism (3) Pleasures are given; it is not the job of the government to make people value things they don t already like.

18 Problems with Bentham s utilitarianism (1) Values are sensations, says Bentham. Does this adequately reflect how we understand the world?

19 Problems with Bentham s utilitarianism (2) Pleasures are quantifiable. Compare falling in love to scratching your head.

20 Problems with Bentham s utilitarianism: (3) Distribution. Utilitarianism only wants the total to be maximized; it doesn t care about the distribution. This can lead to some results we might not be able to accept. Variants: Aggregation objection, scapegoat objection, justice objection, rights objection, fairness objection.

21 Imagine the following case: You are a sheriff, and in your jail is a man you know to be innocent. A mob is threatening to riot unless they are allowed to kill the man. You know that the riot will cause more pain, including more death, than the killing of the innocent man. Do you allow the mob to kill your prisoner?

22 Consider the following two islands: Normalia: 10 people 10 utils each = 100 total utils Denseria: 100 people 2 utils each = 200 utils

23 Consider the following two worlds: World one: 100 people 10 utils per person = 1000 utils World two: Bob gets ritually beaten. Bob at negative 100 utils; 99 people get 12 utils per person = 1088 utils Bob s being scapegoated makes the world happier, but is it fair to Bob?

24 Problems with Bentham s utilitarianism: (4) The Demandingness Problem Psychological & Substantive

25 Problems with Bentham s utilitarianism: (4) The Demandingness Problem Psychological Orneriness objection Hard to calculate

26 Problems with Bentham s utilitarianism: (4) The Demandingness Problem Substantive Zell Kravinsky has given away one of his kidneys as well as most of his 45 million dollar real estate fortune.

27 Summary of Problems 1. Values are sensations 2. Pleasures are quantifiable 3. Distributive objection 4. Demandingness