Ethics

Bentham: Greatest Happiness: 3 key ideas

by Jeremy Bentham

The core ideas of Bentham: Greatest Happiness, each in under a minute, written in our own words. Want the full depth? Get the book.

1. IDEA 1 OF 3

   Utility as the measure

   Bentham judged actions and laws by their effects on pleasure and pain for everyone affected.

   Policy should aim for the greatest happiness of the greatest number.

2. IDEA 2 OF 3

   Everyone counts equally

   In his calculation each person's happiness counts as one, no more and no less.

   This made utilitarianism a reforming force against privilege.

3. IDEA 3 OF 3

   Reform by design

   He proposed practical reforms to prisons, law and administration based on outcomes.

   Ask what a rule actually achieves, not what tradition says.