Utilitarianism

by Geoffrey Scarre

Surveying the historical development and the present condition of utilitarian ethics, Geoffrey Scarre examines the major philosophers from Lao Tzu in the fifth century BC to Richard Hare in the twentieth.
Utilitarianism traces the 'doctrine of utility' from the moralists of the ancient world, through the Enlightenment and Victorian utilitarianism up to the lively debate of the present day. Utilitarianism today faces challenges on several it cannot warrant the drawing of adequate protective boundaries around the essential interests of individuals, and it does not allow them the space to pursue the personal concerns which give meaning to their lives. Geoffrey Scarre considers these and other charges, and concludes that whilst utilitarianism may not be a faultless moral doctrine, its positions are relevant, and significant today.
Written with undergraduates in mind, this is an ideal course book for those studying and those teaching moral philosophy.

Genres: Philosophy

236 pages, Paperback

First published October 7, 1995

About the author

Geoffrey Scarre is a moral philosopher and professor of philosophy at the University of Durham.

His most important work has been on the topics of evil and the Holocaust, and the ethics of archaeology. He has also written on Utilitarianism and John Stuart Mill.

Reviews

[Jim Cook]

I just finished reading this outstanding introduction to the moral/political theory of utilitarianism by Scarre. It outlines the views of most of the classical figures in the movement as well as many contemporary utilitarians. A utilitarian promotes actions that maximize happiness and well-being for the greatest number in a population, ie, actions are good only to the extent they maximize total happiness and/or minimize suffering. While there are many variants of this approach all tend to be consequentialist, welfarist, aggregative, and maximizing.

Scarre includes an interesting chapter on several historical figures he argues were precursors of utilitarian philosophy (the term “utilitarian” was first coined by the British thinker Jeremy Bentham in the early 1700’s). These pro-utilitarians include: the Chinese philosopher Mo Tzu (who lived around the same time as Socrates in Greece), Aristotle, Epicurus, and Jesus.

The bulk of the book focuses on the analysis of some of the key figures is utilitarian theory such as Godwin, Bentham, JS Mill, Sidgwick, and one fellow I was unfamiliar with, Hastings Rushdall, someone I will need to read.

The last two chapters are the most interesting to me as it is here that Scarre outlines his own approach to this view of ethics. I think this was a really good book and recommend it to you if you want to learn more about this sometimes difficult and morally demanding philosophy.

[Michelle Sandford]

Such a good book, easy to read, fun, impactful - it uses really clear examples to get you to understand the crux of each dilemma. If you are a fan of Netflix's The Good Place - in particular the episode on the Trolley Problem - you will love this book!

[Kramer Thompson]

Good overview of utilitarianism. I already knew a lot of this so it wasn't that exciting for me to read, but I still learned a bit about utilitarianism's intellectual history. Worthwhile reading.