Utilitarianism Summary

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According to the creed of moral foundations and utility, right actions tend to promote happiness while wrong ones produce a reverse effect. Happiness promotes the absence of pain while wrong actions have a reverse effect. The theory is based on the notion that morality is based on desirable things as ends and those desirable things are so as a result of pleasure inherent in themselves or as a means to promote pleasure and prevent pain. To suppose that life does not have higher ends except pleasure designates it as groveling and utterly mean. In essence, the accusation paints human nature in a degrading light by supposing that they were incapable of other pleasures except those capable by swines. Comparing the Epicurean life to that of beats is degrading precisely primarily because beasts do not satisfy the concept of human beings of happiness (Piacquadio, 2017). The faculties of human beings are more elevated than animal appetites and when made conscious about them, they do not associate happiness with anything that does not entail their gratification and fulfillment. Instead of placing superiority in the intrinsic nature, utilitarian writers emphasized mental rather than bodily pleasures. This is consistent with the fact that some pleasures are more valuable and desirable than others.

To the question of human creatures agreeing to switch places with lower animals to encounter full allowance of beast pleasures, human beings would never consent to that. Human beings have higher faculty and hence require more to make them happy. They are capable of encountering more acute suffering and are more likely to access it compared to beings of an inferior type. The ideology is that despite the liabilities encountered, humans can never really agree to sink into what makes them feel that their existence of lower grade. This unwillingness is associated with pride, a name used to describe some of the least estimable feelings that humankind display. It can also be attributed to personal independence and liberty. Notably, love of excitement and power has a way of contributing to pride. Moreover, human beings possess dignity in one way or another and proportion to higher faculties is essential for the happiness of human beings. It cannot be disputed that human beings that have low capacities of enjoyment have greater chances of being fulfilled and satisfied while human beings that are highly endowed are of the opinion that any kind of happiness they seek in this world is imperfect. Additionally, if the imperfections are bearable, human beings can always learn how to cope with them not because the imperfections are good but because they qualify.

References

Piacquadio, P. G. (2017). A fairness justification of utilitarianism. Econometrica, 85(4), 1261-1276.