The Theory of Classical Utilitarialism Essay - 1014 Words

In this essay, I will talk about the theory of classical utilitarianism. My objection will be about how classical utilitarianism ignores justice and moral rights, and I will argue how this can undermine the theory. I will then discuss how this theory cannot be saved from this objection. Classical utilitarianism is a form of consequentialism where actions are judged only by the consequences of the action (act based). According to Hodgson (1967), the act is only right if it was to have the best consequences for any alternative acts open to you. Utilitarianism is a popular form of consequentialism. Utilitarian’s believe that the consequence of the action must maximise utility, and by maximizing utility, your action will maximise†¦show more content†¦This means there is also a small amount of guessing involving to come up with what would be the best possible outcome. An objection to classical utilitarianism is how it ignores justice and moral rights. According to Allison (1990, p.38), ‘Utilitarianism fails to provide adequate basis for justice because of its indifference to the pattern of distribution of goods and its goal of improving the aggregate good of all no matter how badly some individuals may do, it may sometimes legitimately augment considerations of justice as the satisfaction of needs.’ Philosophers such as Robert Nozick who came up with ‘the entitlement theory of justice’ also have similar arguments, ‘that satisfying some people’s needs violates other people’s rights.’ (Allison, 1990, p.39). So, for example, there is a story that has made an appearance in the newspaper this year about a female tourist being gang raped by five homeless rapists in India. If we were to look at this from a Deontological theorist, this act is wrong because raping someone is an unjust act to do. However , from a classical utilitarian perspective, this act will be the right thing to do because when adding up the amount of happiness and pleasure the rapists would be getting in comparison to the pain the female tourist would feel, 5:1. However, in saying this, the utilitarian may object to this saying it is not right in saying that they will agree that this would be the right act to do. For example,