Jeremy Bentham (17481832)

INTRO
English philosopher and political radical known today for his moral philosophy, especially his principle of utilitarianism evaluates actions, based upon their consequences (outcome) What motivates us into doing an act? For what reasons and what purpose an act is done? What motivates us?

Pleasure and pain

Happiness is a matter of experiencing pleasure and lack of pain. consequences where overall happiness created for everyone affected by the action rational principles that would provide a basis and guide for legal, social and moral reform

LIFE
A leading theorist in Anglo-American philosophy of law and one of the founders of utilitarianism Jeremy Bentham was born in Houndsditch, London on February 15, 1748. He was the son and grandson of attorneys, his early family life was influenced by a mix of pious superstition (on his mothers side) and Enlightenment rationalism (from his father). Bentham lived during a time of major social, political and economic change.

The Industrial Revolution (with the massive economic and social shifts that it brought in its wake), the rise of the middle class, and revolutions in France and America all were reflected in Benthams reflections on existing institutions.
In 1760, Bentham entered Queens College, Oxford and, upon graduation in 1764, studied law at Lincolns Inn. Though qualified to practice law, he never did so. Instead, he devoted most of his life to writing on matters of legal reformthough, curiously, he made little effort to publish much of what he wrote.

METHOD
Influenced by the philosophies of the Enlightenment (intellectual, scientific and and cultural life). Lockes influence through Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, -who emphasized the importance of reason over custom and tradition -who insisted on precision in the use of terms. -Benthams analytical and empirical method is especially obvious when one looks at some of his main criticisms of the law and of moral and political discourse in general. -legal fictions = relation, right, power, and possession -Bentham hoped to eliminate legal fictions as far as possible from the law.

HUMAN NATURE
Bentham believed that the nature of the human person can be adequately described without mention of social relationships. the idea of relation is but a fictitious entity, though necessary for convenience of discourse. that the community is a fictitious body, and it is but the sum of the interests of the several members who compose it. Thus, the extension of the term individual is no greater and no less than the biological entity. the individualthe basic unit of the social sphereis an atom and there is no self or individual greater than the human individual. A persons relations with otherseven if importantare not essential and describe nothing that is, strictly speaking, necessary to its being what it is.

For Bentham, morals and legislation can be described scientifically, but such a description requires an account of human nature. Just as nature is explained through reference to the laws of physics, so human behaviour can be explained by reference to the two primary motives of pleasure and pain;

this is the theory of psychological hedonism. (pleasure is the only intrinsic good).
admits, no direct proof of such an analysis of human motivation but in acting, all people implicitly (impliedly) refer to it.

Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure. It is for them alone to point out what we ought to do, as well as to determine what we shall do. On the one hand the standard of right and wrong, on the other the chain of causes and effects, are fastened to their throne. They govern us in all we do, in all we say, in all we think: every effort we can make to throw off our subjection, will serve but to demonstrate and confirm it. (Ch. 1)

pain and pleasure

the standard of right and wrong

other the chain of causes and effects

act

act

act

act

one could construct a calculus of value

rational principles that would provide a basis and guide for legal, social and moral reform

Benthams moral philosophy reflects what he calls at different times the greatest happiness principle or the principle of utility
he was not referring to just the usefulness of things or actions, but to the extent to which these things or actions promote the general happiness. what is morally obligatory is that which produces the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people, happiness being determined by reference to the presence of pleasure and the absence of pain. By the principle of utility is meant 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: or, what is the same thing in other words, to promote or to oppose that happiness.

And Bentham emphasizes that this applies to every action whatsoever. That which does not maximize the greatest happiness (such as an act of pure ascetic sacrifice) is, therefore, morally wrong. he provides a number of suggestions that could serve as answers to the question of why we should be concerned with the happiness of others. First, Bentham says, the principle of utility is something to which individuals, in acting, refer either explicitly or implicitly, and this is something that can be ascertained and confirmed by simple observation. Indeed, Bentham held that all existing systems of morality can be reduced to the principles of sympathy and antipathy, which is precisely that which defines utility. A second argument found in Bentham is that, if pleasure is the good, then it is good irrespective of whose pleasure it is.

Bentham also suggests that individuals would reasonably seek the general happiness simply because the interests of others are inextricably bound up with their own, though he recognized that this is something that is easy for individuals to ignore

he proposes that making this identification of interests obvious and, when necessary, bringing diverse interests together would be the responsibility of the legislator. Bentham held that there are advantages to a moral philosophy based on a principle of utility. To begin with, the principle of utility is clear (compared to other moral principles), allows for objective and disinterested public discussion, and enables decisions to be made where there seem to be conflicts of (prima facie) legitimate interests. Moreover, in calculating the pleasures and pains involved in carrying out a course of action (the hedonic calculus), there is a fundamental commitment to human equality. The principle of utility presupposes that one man is worth just the same as another man and so there is a guarantee that in calculating the greatest happiness each person is to count for one and no one for more than one.

hedonic calculus or felicific calculus

Intensity: How strong is the pleasure? Duration: How long will the pleasure last? Certainty or uncertainty: How likely or unlikely is it that the pleasure will occur? Propinquity or remoteness: How soon will the pleasure occur? Fecundity: The probability that the action will be followed by sensations of the same kind. Purity: The probability that it will not be followed by sensations of the opposite kind. Extent: How many people will be affected?

e.g. Baby dumping law = kill the mothers and biological fathers