Utilitarianism as a Moral Theory

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how act utilitarianism is a direct moral theory and how the morally right action is the one that maximises happiness. In comparison, it looks at how rule utilitarianism, while concerned with actions, is a more indirect theory in which the morally right action is not the one that necessarily maximises happiness in every situation. It considers whether John Mill is an act or rule utilitarian, using Mill's idea of customary morality and evaluates which version of utilitarianism is more plausible.

From the Paper:

"Rule utilitarianism is not then very plausible as a form of utilitarianism, but it does at least offer answers to some of the problems with act utilitarianism. If one is to maximise happiness then in theory one has to calculate the welfare values associated with every potential action. This is obviously not realistic as one would have to spend a good deal of one's live calculating such values, which itself would surely not lead to happiness being maximised as these calculations themselves can not be described as particularly pleasurable. Indeed would someone really stand on the shore contemplating the consequences of saving a drowning man for more than a split second before acting?"

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