Utilitarianism is a calculative moral theory associated with the likes of John Stuart Mill, Thomas Hobbes, and other philosophers that consider themselves civil servants. Its appeal mostly comes from the fact that it focuses on social reform and changing unjust laws and policies. In my opinion the greatest strength of Utilitarianism is that it advocates for equal rights regardless of gender, race and species. However, there are more weaknesses than advantages, particularly when it comes to defining the inherent nature of humans. Therefore, I do not approve of Utilitarianism as a moral theory because I cannot understand that if we as human beings are innately egotistical, why we would even humor the idea of being concerned about the pain and pleasure of others. .
The ultimate end-goal of Utilitarianism is eudaimonia, or happiness, and the greatest concern is how we can rid our society of laws, institutions and practices that are unjust. Pain and pleasure are the only measures of good and evil in this moral theory. This is not to say that human happiness comes from self-indulgence. Mill argues that mental pleasures have more value than bodily pleasures. It only means that good and evil are not the foundation, nor the fundamental principles for morality. Some utilitarian theorists will go as far as saying that no action is intrinsically wrong. Rather, pleasure and pain are the only aspects of life that are intrinsically good and bad respectively. The effects of an action are more important than the action itself, which leads to the underlying principle of utility. Utility denies the idea of customary morality which means that there are actions and ideas that we learn are naturally bad. As children, we often do not get any reasons or proof as to why these actions are bad. With the principle of utility, however, we would learn at a young age that we make decisions based off of how beneficial it is to the most amount of people.
