Critically Discuss Utilitarianism as an Ethical Theory. What are the Problems that Confront Utiliatarianism as a Theory of Public Policy?

Utilitarianism is a version of moral philosophy, initiated by Jeremy Bentham and refined and popularized by John Stuart Mill, which, true to its etymology, is concerned above all with the usefulness of human activity. Utilitarianism has been one of the most influential of ethical theories, and the one most widely used in ordinary 'common-sense' decisions. Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) argued that an action should be judged, not simply on the happiness it appeared to offer the …

…Ibid Thiroux, 44 http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~focus205/supreme/utilsum.html Thiroux, 44 Ibid Ibid 46 Ibid http://www.waikato.ac.nz/wfass/subjects/philosophy/courses/150/ethics/util1.shtml http://www.utilitarianism.com/ruleutil.htm http://www.waikato.ac.nz/wfass/subjects/philosophy/courses/150/ethics/util1.shtml http://library.thinkquest.org/3376/Genktk3.htm William Ebestein et al. Great Political Thinkers: Plato to the Present (Harcourt College Publishers 2000) 538 Ibid http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~focus205/supreme/utilsum.html