An Introduction to Mill's Utilitarian Ethics

by Henry R. West

• ISBN13: 9780521828321
• ISBN10: 0521828325
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-12-15
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

John Stuart Mill was the leading British philosopher of the nineteenth century and his famous essay Utilitarianism is the most influential statement of this philosophical approach. Henry West's introduction to utilitarianism serves as both a commentary to, and interpretation of, the text.

Author Biography

Henry R. West is a professor of philosophy at Macalester College in Minnesota.

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. Mill's life and philosophical background

2. Mill's criticism of alternative theories

3. Qualities of pleasure

4. Was Mill an act- or rule-utilitarian?

5. Sanctions and moral motivation

6. Mill's 'proof' of the principle of utility

7. Utility and justice

Appendix. An overall view of Mill's Utilitarianism.