Singer and Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is a moral theory that English philosopher Jeremy Bentham initially formulated it remains one of the most prominent moral theories in philosophy to this day Utilitarianism involves a different approach to ethics than we saw in the work of Plato and Aristotle While Plato and Aristotle focused on what kind of character a person should cultivate utilitarianism focuses on what kinds of actions a person should perform Utilitarians are focused on determining what our moral obligations are irrespective of the kind of person we might be Utilitarianism does not rest upon a robust conception of human nature like Aristotle s ethics but a much simpler empirical observation Sentient life seeks out pleasure and avoids pain Whereas Aristotle identified happiness with an objective account of human flourishing Utilitarians understand being happy as experiencing pleasure and not experiencing pain The Greatest Happiness Principle Actions are right insofar as they promote the overall happiness of the world and wrong insofar as they promote the reverse of happiness in the world Famine Affluence and Morality Referencing an ongoing crisis going on in Bengal at the time However he still maintains the same arguments since they are still relevant I begin with the assumption that suffering and death from lack of food shelter and medical care are bad I think most people will agree about this My next point is this if it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance we ought morally to do it The fact that thousands of people need your help does not alter your moral obligations Just because other people do not contribute money to relieve suffering that doesn t mean you shouldn t Singer s Argument P1 It is bad for people to suffer and die from a lack of food shelter and medical care P2 If it is within your power to perform an action that will prevent something bad from happening without having to sacrifice anything of comparable moral significance in the process you ought to perform that action P3 You can prevent people from suffering and dying from lack of food shelter and medical care by donating money e g through international organizations such as Oxfam P4 Missing out on luxury spending is not morally comparable to dying from lack of food shelter and medical care C You ought to donate money to help those who are dying from lack of food shelter and medical care until a point comes where donating money would be more harmful to you or others then it would be helpful for the recipients
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