Jeremy Bentham 边沁

杰里米·边沁（1748年2月15日-1832年6月6日）。

现代功利主义 Utilitarianism 的创始人。

Born in England 1748
12 years old, went to Oxford
15 years old, went to law school
19 years old, admitted to the bar

Bentham never practiced law, instead he devoted his life to jurisprudence and moral philosophy.

Bentham 的尸体目前放在 University College London。

UCL 董事会他也会以 “present not voting” 名义参加。

Theory

The right thing to do is to maximize utility.

Utility = Balance of Pleasure over Pain, Happiness over Suffering.

Slogan

The greatest good for the greatest number.

John Stuart Mill 穆勒

Born in 1805. 他的父亲 James Mill 是Bentham的 disciple (弟子)。

20岁之前博学多才，20-25岁精神崩溃。后来恢复正常。

Study and View

Utilitarian calculus could be enlarged and modified to

accommodate humanitatian concerns like

the concept to respect individual rights, and

to address the distinction between higher and lower pleasures.

他认为，所有人类的体验都可以量化，但某些快乐是更值得拥有，更有价值的。

Bentham thinks that there are no natural rights, whereas Mill thinks that utilitarian moral theory supports the idea that we should recognize individual rights.

Utilitarianism

Definition

The highest principle of morality (whether personal or political morality)

is to maximize the general welfare or the collective happiness

or the overall balance of pleasure over pain

in a phrase maximize utility.

Objection

fail to respect human life
- Queen v. Dudley
- Phillip Morris and Ford Pinto
- Ford Pinto 案
not possible to translate all value into $ value
- Ancient Rome 斗兽场
- Fifty Penny per Night ()
- Preference of The Simpsons Vs. Shakespeare

生命的价格

Senior citizen discount

US Environmental Protection Agency, the EPA 通过计算得出结论：

70岁以下的 value of a life：$3.7 million,

70岁以上：$2.3 million dollars.

史称 senior citizen discount.

Ancient Rome 奴隶斗狮

They threw Christians to the lions in the coliseum for sport.

但是：the collective ecstasy of Romnas 却很高。

Livng in Kansas 疼痛的价格

in 1930s, a psychologist conducted a survey.

How much for the following unpleasant experiences:

Live in Kansas - $300,000
eat an earth worm - $100,000
…
…
Pull of a tooth: $4500

Higher Vs. Lower Pleasure 人的喜好是否有高低贵贱

Mill 认为：

Higher pleasure requires cultivation (开垦，耕作), appreciation, and education.

But once cultivated, it is possible to distinguish higher pleasures from lower ones. If you have tried both of them, you will prefer the higher ones naturally.

Bentham Quote

The quantity of pleasure being equal, pushpin is as good as poetry.

– Jeremy Bentham

John Stuart Mill Quote 1

The sole evidence it is possible to produce that anything is desirable is that people actually do desire it.

– John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill Quote 2

关于爱好的高贵与低贱：

“It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied. Better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied. And if the fool or the pig are of a different opinion, it is because they only know their side of the question.”