Pleasures And Pleasures In Jermey Bentham's Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism is known for being based on the principle of maximizing the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people. Jermey Bentham is the founder of this political school of thought. Bentham says that people are “under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure .” He uses these two masters as the justification for why his utilitarian system is the way that it is. Bentham’s utilitarianism focuses on the three factors: “the greatest individual pleasure or good”, “the greatest number”, and “the greatest good”. In his work Principles of Morals and Legislation Bentham lays out the foundations of utilitarianism and describes how this system would work if it was implemented. Bentham tries to emphasis that these …show more content…
Further, Bentham goes on in detail to describe these specific pleasures and pains. Pleasures and pains are measured according to seven factors: intensity, duration, certainty and uncertainty, remoteness, fecundity, purity, and extent. By adding extent as a factor to how happiness is measured, then ultimately according to utilitarianism by pursuing a good that has the greatest amount of extent will ultimately be the greatest good because it is impacting happiness for a majority of the community.Although, he does mention that you must take into account the pleasures and pains of every individual but ultimately when calculating pleasures and pains you must take into account what the outcome of the sum is as a whole. Once these pleasures are calculated into a sum and if the act is seen as being the greatest good then it will become a law for the community to follow. Bentham ultimately uses an individual’s happiness as a means to an end in order to achieve the greatest amount of pleasure for the …show more content…
Here government is no more than a calculation of pleasures, where the greatest amount of pleasures will always win. Here, pleasures and pains are used as tools to determine what decision should be made within the community.By using this form of decision making in the government it furthers the argument that utilitarianism was designed to benefit the greatest number not just the individual. Utilitarianism, has changed drastically throughout the years. Ultimately in order for this political theory to be realistic it fell to the needs of supporting the greatest number because, in real life it is impossible to find a solution that isn 't going to cause pain for anyone. Therefore, Bentham’s system focuses on “the greatest number” . While Bentham’s political theory tried to be inclusive of “the greatest individual pleasure or good,” “the greatest number,” and the “greatest good” his system ended up ultimately only supporting one. “The greatest