11/18/2023 0 Comments Mill pleasure principle![]() He argues that while it may be of a greater pleasure to learn an entire language, the person who chooses that will not be more content than the person who chose to consume the world’s best deep dish pizzain fact they may be less content or satisfied. When Mill stated it is “better to be Socrates unsatisfied, than a pig satisfied,” he reminds the reader that happiness and contentment are not the same thing. In this quote, Mill is saying that no quantity of a lower or sensory pleasure, would be worth sacrificing higher or intellectual pleasures. Mill says, “Few human creatures would consent to be changed into any of the lower animals, for a promise of the fullest allowance of a beast’s pleasures (Chapter 2, paragraph 6). Mill states that even if you could have as much of the world’s best deep dish pizza as you desire, the quantity of the pleasure you would receive wouldn’t be enough to outweigh the quality of a higher pleasure like learning a new language. The lower pleasure would be the bodily or sensory one, eating the pizza and the higher pleasure would be the intellectual one, learning a new language. Option two allows you to learn a new language. For example, let’s say there are two options for pleasure, option one allows you to eat the best deep dish pizza of all time. The distinction allowed Mill to combat this earlier Utilitarian critique. In previous Utilitarian theories all pleasures were weighted equally, and the focus was on the quantity. To begin, it seems indisputable that not all pleasures deserve equal weight. I will start with by explaining the advantages of Mill adding quality into the equation and creating a distinction of pleasures to be introduced into the theory of Utilitarianism. Ultimately I will argue against his claim that higher pleasures should always be chosen over lower pleasures because despite being valid, his argument is not sound. In this paper, I will explain advantages and my criticisms of Mill’s addition and explain the differences between this theory and hedonism. Additionally he stated that no quantity of a lower pleasure could achieve the same quality as a higher one.įinally, Mill proposed that the “competent judge” of pleasure is someone who has experienced both pleasures and would always prefer one over the other (chapter 2, paragraph 5). Mill stated that some pleasures are of a higher quality, and therefore are worth more. Mill created a distinction between higher, intellectual pleasures and lower, bodily pleasures. ” In his essay Utilitarianism, John Stuart Mill added a qualitative component to this mathematically driven theory. Utilitarianism states that “an act is only right if it causes the greatest happiness in the greatest number.
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