Utilitarianism and Greatest Happiness Principle Essay Example for Free

Utilitarianism and Greatest Happiness Principle Essay Happiness Happiness: In one word, this concept exemplifies the American dream. People go to any means by which to obtain the many varied materials and issues that induce pleasures in each individual, and intrinsically, this emotion remains the ultimate goal, John Stuart Mill, a nineteenth century philosopher, correctly advocated the pursuit of happiness, and maintained the concept that above all other values, pleasure existed as the final destination, Mills hedonistic views correctly and rationally identified a natural human tendency, and his Utilitarian arguments strongly support the theory that above all else, happiness is the most important dream to be fulfilled. Upon researching for this paper, I came across a counter argument, which was based on metaphysics. Immanuel Kant, in Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, defends his strong beliefs in the issue of a good will, and surfaces as MMs chief opponent on the topic of metaphysics, The issue diminishes to a clash between emotions and pleasures ve rses rationality and logic. Yet, what use is logic when the good agent is miserable? Mills stance within Utilitarianism exists as the more favorable of the two beliefs, for happiness exist as the one intrinsically favorable element, not an emotionless mind. The main defender of the Utilitarian system exists within the Greatest happiness Principle. Mill lived as a chief advocate of this concept, which supports the idea that a decision is morally correct as long as it increases and encourages pleasures and happiness. Kant, however, in his endless quest to remain separate from emotions and thrive only on logic, would argue that autonomy should be placed above happiness in a list of intrinsic values. A good will, however, does not comfort an individual in any way if happiness does not accompany this asset, Consider this example of a seemingly happily married couple. The wife in this duo is madly in love with her husband fiercely loyal, and completely happy with her marriage and children. The husband, however, as wrongfully strayed, and had a brief, but damaging affair behind his wifes back. Kant would argue that autonomy reigns over pleasure, and the woman should therefore want to be informed of her husbands adultery, Mill would greatly disagree. By revealing the secret of the past affair, the womans happy world would be instantly shattered. Her pride would diminish, her stability would fall apart, and the children especially would be forced to view a nasty side of their beloved father. In this case, individual control is greatly overshadowed by the need for happiness. The husband is no longer acting unfaithful and the family can easily continue to live in a happy realm, If the secret were to become uncovered, all members of this circumstance unavoidably would become terribly disappointed, Under the Greatest Happiness Principle, the wife should not be informed. Since happiness truly lives as the ultimate in human desires, sparing such immense amounts of pain truly is the logical choice, Mills argument prevails, and all those involved remain happy. Through this example, one can easily see that although autonomy is often a favorable feature, it does not overshadow the importance of happiness. One of the main arguments against Utilitarianism exist in the lack of apparent fairness. An advocate of the Kantian logic principle would argue that Mills belief system does not allow for equal treatment, When considering what is best for an entire society, however, it is necessary for certain individuals to endure suffering. The good of society remains the ultimate goal, and unfortunate pain is therefore inevitable, If young children are being killed in a certain community, the obvious good for this society is discovering and punishing the murderer. Especially when children are involved, people automatically demand prompt justice. The officials of this area have searched immensely for the accused, yet no leads have surfaced, and the community suddenly erupts with anger, they demand that someone be punished, As a Utilitarian, the police chief sees a window of opportunity. A drug dealer has recently been brought in on yet another drug selling offense, and the chief decides to coerce the invalu able member of society into confessing the crime at hand, By doing so, the community instantly reunites in support and a dangerous and deadly revolt is avoided, and a menace to society is right back where he would have been regardless of his confession: behind bars, Kant, however, would argue that logically, the chase for the true offender should continue. He would shun the emotional decision to make the whole society happy by ignoring the rational decisions. But since the community obviously chooses happiness over logic, Kants arguments are irrelevant. In addition, Kant believes in a decision making process completely separate from the natural human emotions, Such a demand is possible only for a character such as Star Treks Dr. Spock, for human emotions are as much a part of every day life as the decision making process itself. Logically speaking, therefore, Mills Utilitarianism arguments maintain the largest dose of validity. Other opponents to the philosophical viewpoint of Utilitarianism state that followers of this belief system often promote an ignorant lifestyle, They maintain that advocates of the Greatest Happiness Principle believe in the theory that ignorance is bliss, Again, such reasoning is quite faulty. Displaying the erroneousness of this statement can be done by examining the issue of AIDS, An opponent of Utilitarianism would say an Infected HIV victim would not want to be aware of his disorder, Such a belief is extremely incorrect. Mill and other Utilitarian are strong advocates of education, for with intelligence, greater levels of achievement and happiness can be obtained. A member of this belief system would rightly argue that being aware of the disorder could increase long-term happiness, for treatments and support from friends and family could greatly aid the victims fight against his or her alhnents, Mills therefore strongly support education systems and believe in making society as a whole as happy as possible. In the case of the AIDS victim, a Utilitarian would also support the notification of the disorder to the victim in order to spare others of contracting the virus, The happiness of the majority would not be increased by an unknowing HIV carrier spreading the disease to other defenseless individuals, Utilitarianism clearly is not a ignorant way to live, and the Kantian philosophy of ignoring the irrational system of emotions cannot refute this standard. Without happiness, the other opportunities and necessities lose nearly all levels of importance. A true Utilitarian supports only those concepts that promote the highest levels of pleasures, and as Mill states, encourages only those actions that promote real happiness, From a Kantian viewpoint, rationality and the possession of a good will remains the most important element, but even someone with the truest and most logical of intentions can easily exist in a realm of pure depression. The one link that exists between these opposite belief systems is the concept that, all decisions should be made outside of ones personality. The key is that Kant said this decisions should be made without any regard for human emotions, A request of this magnitude is a part of a utopian society only, for ignoring ones emotions is an illogical assumption in itself, If your child and wife are both dying, deciding which one to save cannot be made without some emotional influence, Utilitarianism allows for the emotional side of life but requests only that the Greatest Happiness Principle be strictly followed. Any truly decent human being naturally follows such a request every day, Decisions are made based on the greatest level of happiness, That way, the largest majority of people benefit, and the greatest amount of happiness is achieved. Yet as Kant believed, a more morally correct decision lies at the heart of every dilemma. How does one decide who is morally more correct to save in an instance where two cherished loved ones are passing away, and only one individual may be saved? And even more importantly, how does one do so without regard emotions? I personally feel that living strictly by the doctrine of Kantian philosophy is completely impossible. Being a Utilitarian and hedonist, such as Mill, makes more sense to me.

Comparing the Eras: Puritan vs Present Essay -- Comparing Compare Cont

Comparing the Eras: Puritan vs Present In the Bible I follow it is said that Jesus is Mother Mary’s adored son, â€Å"Flesh of my flesh and Blood of my blood,† and in fact any child is a being created by the bond between the parents, flesh of their flesh and blood of their blood. Whether a child was born during the Puritan era, or born as of yesterday, the birth of the child would remain unchanged, but what is not evident is whether there is any similarity in the upbringing of a child between the two different eras. When studying the Puritan era and the life of a Puritan child, and comparing it to the way I was raised, and the way I raise my children, I began to wonder which of the two eras would be the most favorable. During the seventeenth century the female children were expected to do house work such as washing everything manually whereas in today’s world we have the luxury of using dishwashers and washing machines to ease our daily lives, and most importantly most children are not expected to do such chores. Many children now-a-days may have loving and affectionate relationships with their parents, and many children may even think of their parents as their friend, and still have respect towards their parents whereas the children of the Puritan era were taught to respect their parents by fearing them. In â€Å"The Puritan Family: Religion and Domestic Relations in Seventeenth-Century New England,† Edmund S. Morgan writes, â€Å"According to Cobbet, filial reverence consisted of a holy respect and fear both of a parent’s person and of his words; a reverent child†¦.† Present day, the average child is allowed to be a child—play, have fun, run around—and most importantly is given a future of opportunities while the children... ...ised. Puritan parents placed their children in a different home to learn better manners, and some children today are placed in military schools. The difference is that it was normal for Puritan parents to place their child in another person’s home while some parents now-a-days use military schools as a way to punish their child. The courts in the Puritan days would punish the children which may be similar to today’s courts punishing the juveniles who commit a crime, but the difference is that in the Puritan days the courts would interfere when a child was disobedient towards a parent whereas the courts now become involved mostly when a child actually commits a crime outside of the home, and it is a parent’s job to discipline the child at home. I am content with only experiencing the Puritan days through books because I do not agree with the Puritans way of life.

Limit on Sale of Second Homes

Today the South West is seen as a hotspot or retreat for all age groups. Its beautiful landscapes and popular coastline mean that many people are regularly visiting Cornwall, leading into them buying second homes. However these outsiders are pushing locals away and this is why I propose councils enforce a limit on the sale of second home properties in popular areas. With so many people interested in second homes the property market is booming and prices are continuing to increase, between 2001 and 2004 in the town of Padstow property prices rose by 144% (from Halifax survey). With this in mind locals are trying to invest in property before it becomes too expensive, yet so are outsiders who are willing and more able to pay more as they still have 10% discount on council tax. Second home owners used to only have to pay 50% of council tax yet this was then raised to 90% in order to help support local projects. This situation is having a terrible effect on local people. Higher prices and higher taxes have to be paid which some cannot afford, resulting in people having to move away from their local area in order to stay financially stable. This then leaves another home on the market that is more likely to become a second home. In the small fishing village of Port Isaac, now well known as the setting for television show Doc Martin, ITV, staggeringly 75% of the properties are second homes. This causes a number of seasonal problems. During the summer roads become busy and dangerous, beaches full, environment damaged†¦what can only be described as a mere hell for locals. â€Å"I had to pay à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½4 to park in Polzeath† complained a local surfer. Also during the evenings tourist children have been a persistent problem in Polzeath. Students coming down for the summer to stay in their family or friends second homes are found congregated on the road and beach drinking, shouting and vandalising property, and this is on a nightly basis. To solve the problem nine police officers were stationed at Polzeath to patrol the evenings yet this was a waste of money and very annoying for local youths â€Å"When we wanted to hang out we would have to stand in a spotlighted area that the police had allocated, just because others were causing trouble† said a teenager from Polzeath. However when winter settles in they all return north leaving towns like Port Isaac and Polzeath to appear as ‘ghost towns' . This then leaves local businesses with no option but to close up for the winter which also leaves locals unemployed and it can be very hard to find a job for the winter. As soon as winter comes the local teens are left with the town to themselves and not much to do. Most travel to Wadebridge, which is about fifteen minutes away, to work and to meet up with friends in town. Recently â€Å"Tube Station† was built in Polzeath, a half pipe for skaters of Polzeath and the surrounding area to use and also for other teens to just hang out. This is why I think a limit on the sale of second homes in popular areas should be enforced. It would help by; firstly less second homes means more local homes at affordable prices, also larger population numbers would be maintained throughout the year and furthermore businesses would be able to have a longer season and provide jobs through the winter†¦ And with all this gained we still don't loose our biggest input from tourism that helps keep our economy going. I'm not saying we stop the sale of second homes as we then would have a major fall in our economy but if we limit the number of second homes available locals will have a better lifestyle which they are entitled to and outsiders will still have the option to move here. Limiting second homes in popular areas also gives the chance to then develop housing in small areas for permanent residents but also second home owners and overall improve the economy of the South West.

Why Homeless Resort to Violence Essay - 2194 Words

Homelessness is a growing epidemic across the country. Over 2 million people are homeless in America, and that number is increasing. 40% are families with kids, 30% are drug and/or alcohol addicts, 23% are mentally ill and 10% are veterans. This terrible misfortune has led to many unsuspecting people leading impoverished lifestyles, and facing the horrific and heart-wrenching tragedy of abandonment. The purpose of this essay is to not only persuade the readers to get involved in ending homelessness on local and national efforts, but to embrace new and creative ways of helping to end this rapidly growing problem, by taking action to end this catastrophic situation. Also, I will demonstrate the causes and effects of the homeless resorting†¦show more content†¦The sorrow and fear that they face each day, not knowing where they will spend the night, and with their safety and security in question, is heart-wrenching to say the least. It is crucial that we find new and creative wa ys of helping the homeless, through education, recreation, religion, and the revamping of homeless shelters. I implore you to help the destitute, so that we might end this travesty once and for all. To grasp my viewpoint, it is important that you open your mind to gain a wealth of fascinating information, that will help you to understand that the homeless should be able to receive an education, in pursuit of a better life. Education is as old as civilization, and aims at producing intelligent, responsible, well-informed citizens, who take an active interest in the world around them. Education includes a variety of learning experiences. Acquiring knowledge, skills, habits, values, and attributes, can better help our homeless to become useful and productive members of society, and shape their character in hopes that it will remain with them throughout their lives. Education is more important today than ever before. 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