Jeremy Bentham Tried to Establish

Jeremy Bentham tried to establish an objective criterion for ethics by making ethical decisions scientifically verifiable. In what ways is his hedonistic calculus an attempt to make ethical decision making scientific? Does he succeed in developing a " science" of morality? What are some of the drawbacks of using hedonistic calculus? Give an example of an ethical dilemma that might be difficult to solve using this calculus.

According to Jeremy Bentham's hedonistic calculus, human beings naturally strive to enhance pleasure and to avoid pain. To ensure social compliance and enhance positive behavior, the state or other authority figure should strive for a policy of pleasure maximization and pain minimization, and the opposite to punish undesirable behavior. An easy example of Bentham's principal in action might be found in the example of housetraining a dog -- the dog is punished with a cry of 'bad dog,' and being returned to his or her kennel when the dog soils in the house, and is rewarded with praise when the dog 'holds it in' until going outside. This form of operant conditioning is often seen when scientists deal with the animal world and its mirroring in Bentham's philosophy reflects Bentham's desire to create a scientific 'training' system to encourage positive behaviors in humans. This calculus is evident in many aspects of government today, not just simply the rewards and punishment system of the prison system, but even in 'sin taxes' that attempt to dissuade people from bad behavior like smoking or excessive drinking.

As the founder of utilitarianism, Bentham thought that the ultimate goal of all moral schemas was to ensure the maximum amount of happiness for the greatest number of individuals, even if this meant pain for some. He also developed a calculus of how to 'rate' or measure pain. Pain should be rated on its intensity and how long it lasted; the probability if the pain was to occur or not; how far off in the future was the pain; the probability it would lead to more pleasure or pain; and the extent to which the pain affected others. A good example of why a certain improperly calculated punishment did not serve to deter bad behavior might be seen in the current subprime mortgage crisis. Yes, the proposed pain of losing one's home provided one defaults on a mortgage might be great and intense, and long-lasting. It also does have effects on one's family. However, the probability of the bank taking away one's home might seem so remote in the future, that an imprudent investment might be undertaken, like a mortgage with a high rate of interest for a luxury home the family cannot really afford.

An example of a 'good' punishment, or a certain and immediate one might be a 'three strikes you're out' law regarding certain classes of felonies -- Bentham would also likely support mandatory sentences for criminal offenders, given this would increase the certainty and intensity of punishment. Laws regarding cigarette smoking also seem to support Bentham's thesis -- although cigarette smokers might complain that they are a persecuted minority, when the costs of smoking reach a certain rate, and when smoking is banned from more and more public places, the pains of paying too much (and feeling like a social pariah, standing on a street corner in the freezing cold) eventually exceed the pleasures of continuing a deadly habit. Smoking rates do seem to be down, as a result of sin taxes and smoking bans in public areas like restaurants.

However, although this might be an example of when Bentham's moral science might seem to work (although it is controversial how helpful mandatory sentences may be) it is hard not to think of a familiar phrase: "one man's meat is another man's poison" -- in short, what gives pleasure to some might not give pleasure to all. A good example of this might be a child who is starving for parental attention. The child begins to 'act out' and is punished. The parents think they are acting to deter the behavior, but in reality, rather than experiencing an intense and swift punishment, the child experiences the punishment as a kind of reward, because it is at least feels like some kind of attention. Another example might be that of an individual who enjoys flouting the law or ethics. Some people might like to take advantage of a corporate expense account, not so much for the pleasure given by the stole items, but the pleasure of getting away with a petty crime, which should not rationally exceed the possible painful consequences of getting caught.