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Intro to Philosophy Unit 7: Ethical Theories: Utilitarianism, Kant, Virtue

Normative ethics asks what makes actions right or wrong. This unit covers the three major theories, utilitarianism, Kantian ethics and virtue ethics, along with egoism, relativism, divine command theory and care ethics, and the leading objections to each.

Covers: Utilitarianism: Bentham and Mill, Act and rule utilitarianism, Objections to utilitarianism, Kant's categorical imperative, Duty and moral worth, Virtue ethics, Egoism, relativism, divine command and care ethics

Study guide

Utilitarianism, developed by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, holds that the right action is the one that produces the greatest overall happiness for everyone affected, with each person counting equally. Bentham was a hedonist who measured pleasures by quantity using his hedonic calculus: intensity, duration, certainty, nearness, fecundity, purity and extent. Mill added that some pleasures, such as intellectual and moral ones, are higher in quality: 'better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied.' Act utilitarians judge each act by its consequences, while rule utilitarians judge acts by whether they follow rules that would maximize utility if generally accepted. Utilitarianism's appeal is its impartiality and its focus on real effects on well-being.

Critics raise several objections. Act utilitarianism seems to permit terrible acts when numbers favor them, such as a surgeon killing one patient to save five, which suggests it ignores rights and justice. Nozick's utility monster shows that maximizing totals can ignore fair distribution. Bernard Williams argued it attacks personal integrity by treating our deepest commitments as mere inputs. Others say it is too demanding, since it seems to require constant sacrifice. Rule utilitarianism answers some of these worries but faces the charge of 'rule worship' or of collapsing into act utilitarianism once exceptions are added. Utilitarians reply by stressing indirect effects, such as lost trust, and by questioning how reliable our intuitions are.

Immanuel Kant argued that morality rests on reason, not consequences. The only thing good without qualification is a good will, and an act has moral worth only when done from duty, not merely in line with it. Moral commands are categorical imperatives, binding regardless of our desires, unlike hypothetical imperatives such as 'if you want to pass, study.' The formula of universal law says to act only on maxims you could will as universal laws; a lying promise fails because universal lying would destroy trust in promises. The formula of humanity says to treat persons always as ends, never merely as means. Kant held perfect duties, such as not lying, allow no exceptions, which leads to the famous case of the murderer at the door; critics also note that how a maxim is described can change the verdict.

Virtue ethics, rooted in Aristotle and revived by Elizabeth Anscombe, Alasdair MacIntyre and Rosalind Hursthouse, asks what kind of person to be. Right action is what a virtuous person would characteristically do, guided by practical wisdom. Supporters say it captures the role of character, emotion and judgment; critics say it gives too little guidance in hard cases. Other views round out the map. Ethical egoism says each should pursue self-interest, which differs from psychological egoism, a claim about how people do behave. Cultural relativism says morality is set by cultures, though critics note it makes reformers wrong by definition. Divine command theory faces the Euthyphro dilemma, and care ethics, from Carol Gilligan and Nel Noddings, emphasizes relationships and attention to particular others.

Key ideas

• Utilitarianism judges acts by their consequences for total happiness, counting everyone equally.
• Mill distinguished higher and lower pleasures; Bentham measured pleasures by quantity alone.
• Act and rule utilitarianism differ on whether to evaluate individual acts or general rules.
• Kant held that morality consists of categorical imperatives grounded in reason, not in outcomes.
• The universal law and humanity formulas are the two most tested versions of the categorical imperative.
• Virtue ethics locates right action in what a virtuous, practically wise person would do.
• Each theory faces signature objections: rights and demandingness for utilitarianism, rigidity for Kant, guidance for virtue ethics.

Formulas and rules

Common mistakes

• Thinking utilitarianism counts only the agent's happiness, when it counts everyone affected equally.
• Saying Kant forbids ever using people as means; he forbids using them merely as means.
• Confusing acting in accordance with duty and acting from duty in Kant's account of moral worth.
• Confusing ethical egoism (what we ought to do) with psychological egoism (what we always do).
• Doing a utilitarian calculation but forgetting to subtract harms from benefits.

Before the test, make sure you can

• Explain the principle of utility and compare Bentham's and Mill's views of pleasure.
• Calculate and compare the net utility of options described in words.
• Distinguish act and rule utilitarianism and state an objection to each.
• Apply Kant's universal law and humanity formulas to an example.
• Explain Kant's view of moral worth and the difference between hypothetical and categorical imperatives.
• Explain how virtue ethics determines right action and its main criticism.
• Identify ethical egoism, cultural relativism, divine command theory and care ethics and an objection to each.
• Analyze the trolley and footbridge cases using double effect.

Words to know

Utilitarianism

The theory that the right act produces the greatest overall happiness for all affected.

Hedonic calculus

Bentham's method for measuring pleasure by intensity, duration, certainty, nearness, fecundity, purity and extent.

Higher pleasures

Mill's term for intellectual and moral pleasures he judged superior in quality to bodily ones.

Act utilitarianism

The view that each act should be judged by its own consequences.

Rule utilitarianism

The view that acts should follow rules whose general acceptance would maximize utility.

Utility monster

Nozick's imagined being whose huge capacity for pleasure would make utilitarianism give it everything.

Integrity objection

Williams' objection that utilitarianism alienates people from their own commitments.

Good will

For Kant, a will that acts from duty; the only thing good without qualification.

Categorical imperative

Kant's supreme moral law, a command that binds regardless of one's desires.

Hypothetical imperative

A command that applies only if one has a certain goal.

Maxim

The personal rule or principle on which someone acts.

Formula of humanity

Treat humanity always as an end and never merely as a means.

Perfect duty

A duty with no exceptions for inclination, such as not lying or not making false promises.

Imperfect duty

A duty with some latitude in how and when it is fulfilled, such as helping others.

Virtue ethics

Ethics centered on character traits and what a virtuous person would do.

Ethical egoism

The view that each person ought to act in their own self-interest.

Cultural relativism

The view that right and wrong are relative to each culture's standards.

Divine command theory

The view that moral rightness depends on God's commands.

Ethics of care

An approach emphasizing relationships and attentiveness to the needs of particular others.

Doctrine of double effect

The principle that causing harm as a foreseen side effect can be permissible when intending it would not be.

Sample practice questions

30 more questions like these, from level 1 to 5, are in the practice set.