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A level RE exemplar essay on Explain rule utilitarianism (20)
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Explain Rule Utilitarianism (20)Utilitarianism is the view that the most useful end is the one which brings about the most
happiness or pleasure and, therefore, people should conduct actions which maximise
this.Utilitarianism is an action centered (concerned by the actions) and teleological (finding the
end goal of happiness) approach. It was originally proposed by Bentham in his book, "An
Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation" for act utilitarianism. Mill later developed
this into Rule Utilitarianism in "On Liberty", a deontological and teleological hybrid. This essay
will explain rule utilitarianism with reference to Mill and concepts of higher and lower pleasures.
Mill addresses one of the main criticisms of Bentham which was that not all pleasures are the
same. He introduced the concept of "higher" and "lower" pleasures to address the criticism.
Higher pleasures are those that stimulate the mind such as academia, working and reading as
the activities are enriching and, therefore, make us happier. Lower pleasures are basic desires
such as sleeping and eating. Mill said that, "it is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a
pig satisfied", indicating that people should choose to do higher pleasures and also encourages
societal development.
Mill also introduced the harm principle in Rule Utilitarianism, where we may never limit the
freedom of others to act unless it is to prevent harm being done to other people. This is so that
the pursuit of happiness cannot interfere with the happiness of others. For example, an
individual should have complete freedom to make decisions unless they bring harm to a child,
someone with mental health difficulties or someone without sufficient education. In these cases,
we can interfere with personal liberty.
Furthermore, the principle of Mill's theory is that we do not need to use the Hedonic Calculus (a
system used to measure the quantity of happiness), and instead can apply universal rules such
as "do not kill". Mill states that there are two types of Rule Utilitarianism: strong rule and weak
rule. Strong rule utilitarianism is where rules should never be disobeyed as they are put in place
to protect everyone's happiness, and therefore, breaking it would risk others happiness. Weak
Rule Utilitarianism is where rules can be broken to protect the happiness of the majority. For
instance, killing a dictator before he kills millions.
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