Rule utilitarians argue that following rules that tend to lead to the greatest good will have better consequences overall than allowing exceptions to be made in individual instances, even if better consequences can be demonstrated in those instances. Though there are many varieties of the view discussed, utilitarianism is generally. Though not fully articulated until the 19 th century, proto-utilitarian positions can be discerned throughout the history of ethical theory. In contrast, act utilitarians judge an act in terms of the consequences of that act alone (such as stopping at a red light), rather than judging whether it faithfully adhered to the rule of which it was an instance (such as, "always stop at red lights"). Utilitarianism is one of the most powerful and persuasive approaches to normative ethics in the history of philosophy. Philosophers Richard Brandt and Brad Hooker are major proponents of such an approach.įor rule utilitarians, the correctness of a rule is determined by the amount of good it brings about when followed. Factors may vary from one situation to the next making it possible that different actions are morally right even in two. Act utilitarians argue that we should apply the greatest happiness principle on a case-by-case basis. Rule utilitarianism is a form of utilitarianism that says an action is right as it conforms to a rule that leads to the greatest good, or that "the rightness or wrongness of a particular action is a function of the correctness of the rule of which it is an instance". Within this moral theory, there is a major division between act and rule utilitarianism. Wikipedia Rate this definition: 0.0 / 0 votes
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |