Consequentialist Theories

1
Consequentialist Theories

• Chapter 5

2
The Appeal of Consequentialist Theories

• The notion that right actions are the ones that
  produce the greatest balance of good over evil
  has a certain appeal to our common sense.
• But how do the two most common consequentialist
  theories--ethical egoism and utilitarianism--actua
  lly work when tested against our considered moral
  judgments and common moral experience?

3
Ethical Egoism

• Ethical egoism is the theory that the right
  action is the one that promotes the most
  favorable balance of good over evil for oneself.

4
Two Forms of Ethical Egoism

• Act-egoism to determine right action, you must
  apply the egoistic principle to individual acts.
• Rule-egoism to determine right action, you must
  see if an act falls under a rule that, if
  consistently followed, would maximize your
  self-interest.

5
Test Case

• Jack sees a woman drop a 100.00 bill, but the
  woman has not noticed that she has dropped it. He
  is tempted to take the money, as it would make
  things considerably easier for him throughout the
  week. It seems clear to Jack that stealing the
  money would promote his well-being more so than
  failing to take it.

6
Test Case Continued

• Act-egoism The act egoist would likely advise
  Jack to take the money, as long as he is fairly
  certain that he will not be found out.
• Rule-egoism The rule egoist might respond to the
  situation by applying a general rule, like Be
  honest and cooperative with others, which
  typically tends to promote individual well-being.
  In this case, he might advise Jack to return the
  money to its rightful owner.

7
Ethical Egoism

• The theory of ethical egoism rests heavily on
  psychological egoism--the notion, common in the
  social and biological sciences, that the ultimate
  motive for our actions is self-interest.

8
Evolutionary Ethics

• There are some who believe that the foundation of
  human ethics resides in the social or biological
  evolution of our species. One theory is that we
  are biologically programmed to promote the
  healthiest survival conditions for ourselves, and
  some of these conditions require certain ethical
  codes.

9
Ethical Egoism

• Ethical egoism is not the same as doing
  whatever one desires or whatever gives the most
  pleasure.
• Even ethical egoists must consider the
  long-range effects of their actions.
• At least most of the time, ethical egoists are
  likely better off cooperating with others,
  developing reciprocal relationships, and avoiding
  actions that antagonize other people in their
  community and society.

10
Evaluating Ethical Egoism

• Criterion 1 Consistency with our considered
  moral judgments
• A major criticism of ethical egoism is that it is
  NOT consistent with our considered moral
  judgments. There are many actions that we can
  imagine that in our considered moral judgment are
  wrong but that the theory of ethical egoism would
  say are morally acceptable.

11
Evaluating Ethical Egoism

• Criterion 2 Consistency with our moral
  experience
• The major element of our moral experience that is
  clearly violated by the theory of ethical egoism
  is the notion of moral impartiality--treating
  equals equally. Ethical egoism obviously doesnt
  advocate impartiality instead, it advocates
  thinking about ones own interests foremost.

12
Evaluating Ethical Egoism

• Criterion 3 Usefulness in moral problem solving
• The arguments regarding the usefulness of ethical
  egoism in solving everyday moral dilemmas dont
  suggest definitively either way whether the
  theory is useful or not.
• Our judgment regarding the first two criteria
  should be sufficient to raise doubts about the
  adequacy of ethical egoism as a moral theory.

13
Utilitarianism

• Utilitarianism says that the right action or rule
  is that which produces the best balance of
  happiness (or good) over unhappiness (or evil)
  for everyone concerned.

14
Two Forms of Utilitarianism

• Act-utilitarianism affirms that the right action
  is the one that directly produces the best
  balance of happiness over unhappiness for all
  concerned
• Rule-utilitarianism says that the morally right
  action is the one that, if followed as a general
  rule, would produce the greatest overall good,
  all instances and everyone considered

15
Act-Utilitarianism

• Is built on the principle of utility
• Relies on the notion of the greatest happiness
  for the greatest number
• Considers the immediate consequences of a
  particular action

16
Rule-Utilitarianism

• Is also built on the principle of utility
• Also relies on the notion of the greatest
  happiness for the greatest number
• Focuses not on individual actions per se, but
  instead on the rule that a particular action
  implies.
• If the rule implied by an action is one that, if
  followed in all cases, produces the greatest
  balance of happiness over unhappiness for
  everyone concerned, then it is morally right.

17
Test Case

• Dr. Jill is treating five patients. Four of them
  need healthy organs within the next few days in
  order to survive. The fifth has just a minor
  cold, and healthy organs that could be
  distributed among the other patients to save
  their lives. Furthermore, Dr. Jill is aware that
  the healthy patient has no family, no aptitude
  for benefiting society at any point in his life,
  and is generally just an unlikeable and
  insignificant person. She considers
  sacrificing the healthy patient to save the
  four others.

18
Test Case Continued

• Act-utilitarianism The act utilitarian might
  hold that Dr. Jill ought to sacrifice the one
  healthy patient for four others, provided she has
  enough info to ensure that his death would
  promote more happiness than his life.
• Rule-utilitarianism The rule utilitarian might
  insist that as a general rule, people would be
  far less happy if, though innocent themselves,
  they could be killed at any moment for the
  well-being of others. Such a rule would conflict
  with Jills decision to harm the healthy patient.

19
Evaluating Utilitarianism

• Criterion 1 Consistency with our considered
  moral judgments
• Perhaps the most serious problem with
  utilitarianism is its conflict with commonsense
  views about justice.
• When pursuing the greatest happiness goal, it
  is sometimes necessary to harm a minority to
  benefit a majority, to act unjustly against one
  in order to secure the happiness of many.
• Justice, on the other hand, requires equal
  treatment of persons.

20
Evaluating Utilitarianism

• Criterion 2 Consistency with our moral
  experience
• Utilitarianism seems consistent with our moral
  experience.

21
Evaluating Utilitarianism

• Criterion 3 Usefulness in moral problem solving
• Act-utilitarianism has a no rest problem.
• It requires that in our actions we always try to
  maximize utility, everyone considered. This may
  be asking too much of us. If it is asking too
  much of us, utilitarianisms usefulness as a
  guide to the moral life may be suspect.

22
Evaluating Utilitarianism

• To address the no rest problem, some
  philosophers have turned to rule-utilitarianism,
  which posits general rules that maximize overall
  utility. If a specific act can be seen as
  consistent with a general rule that maximizes
  utility, then that act can be considered morally
  right.

23
Jeremy Bentham

• A good act increases the balance of pleasure over
  pain in the community
• A bad act decreases it
• The best acts maximize the balance of pleasure
  over pain

24
John Stuart Mill

• Mill pleasures differ in quality as well as
  quantity
• It is better to be a human being dissatisfied
  than a pig satisfied.
• We are capable of better pleasures than pigs are

25
Mill on Liberty

• Harm principle
• The only justification for restricting liberty is
  harm to others
• We ought to be free to do what we please so long
  as we dont violate someone elses rights

26
Discussion Questions

• Ring of Gyges
• Suppose a poor peasant stumbled upon a ring that
  gave him the ability to become invisible at any
  time. He uses the ring to kill the king and
  seduce the queen. He is now rich and powerful and
  immensely happy despite his murder and treason.
• Assuming that he will never be found out, what,
  if anything, could one say to persuade him that
  he should not have acted as he did?

27
Discussion Questions

• The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas
• - Ursula LeGuin
• Inhabitants of Omelas never suffer. As long as
  they dwell there, the y will always be healthy
  and happy. There is no treachery, no pain, no
  sadness theirs is a paradise in which(almost)
  everyone flourishes and loves one another. The
  exception is a small child who is kept in a tiny,
  dark room. He is shown no love or kindness, and
  given just enough food to survive . He suffers
  immensely, but somehow the otherwise perfect
  conditions in Omelas depend on his suffering.
• Would you stay in Omelas?

28
Discussion Questions

• Mill maintains that some pleasures are higher
  than others. Is this true? If so, how do we
  determine which are the higher pleasures?

29
Group WorkVideo Games, Liberty, and Happiness