Utilitarianism By John Stuart Mill

Throughout the study of ethics, a main concern for the philosopher is the set of morals that judge society. John Stuart Mill discusses his own concept of morality and what constitutes a moral action in his book Utilitarianism. Mill makes the argument that an action is moral due to its consequences, and not a person’s inner motives. To explain this theory, he defines morality and distinguishes between morality and worth. Mill attempts to use his principle of utility and philosophy of the moral act to establish a universal standard for morality. Mill’s philosophy of morality is rooted in the principle of utility, which he calls the greatest happiness principle. Utility is the act of maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain. Obtaining happiness for …show more content…
First, If the internal motive of actions is eliminated there will be less drive to lead a moral life. Mill fights this point by explaining that the drive for prevention of pain is strong enough motivation to perform moral acts. Mill separates actions from a person’s morality. I tend to think that a person is defined by their action, however, if you have the wrong intentions you will be unable to always perform the moral act. For example, you will be unable to always perform the moral act, that is, one that brings happiness to the greatest number of people, if your intentions are selfish and you are only looking out for yourself. If someone accidently performed a non-moral act, we recognize that this action is less immoral than if they had purposely attempted the act, for example, first degree murder versus involuntary manslaughter. The motivation for performing an action effects whether the action is good, and a moral person should do the right thing, regardless of consequences. Mill makes the argument that the motives of an action do not matter when determining if the action is moral, yet, I am not convinced that an action can be completely moral if the intentions are