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Indeed, in the second edition of Practical Ethics (1993) he adopts Hare’s two-level utilitarianism, which states that we should establish our everyday choices on intuitive moral thinking based on rules which usually maximize happiness or preferences. 6 What then legitimizes utilitarianism in Singer’s eyes is the position it holds as “a first base.” 7 In other words, if one adopts the universal point of view common to all great ethical ideals (be they individual rights, the sanctity of life, justice, or virtue ethics), if one agrees with the fact that individual desires and tastes should not count for more than the desires and tastes of others, then it simply suggests that we adopt the course of action most likely, on balance, to maximize the interests of all those affected.ħSinger is more than a preference utilitarian, though. With preferences, the calculus is based on objective behaviour rather than on mental state, and therefore much easier to apply. 14.ĦSinger views this far more recent version of utilitarianism as more flexible, while further seeing it as a response to a criticism often levelled against Bentham’s felicific calculus, the objection stemming from the difficulty in determining a specific amount of happiness from an individual’s mental state (a subjective evaluation).

6 This form of utilitarianism has also been criticised on the grounds that some preferences do not m (.).

Bentham’s utilitarianism can be seen as a more hedonistic one, its goal being to maximise the happiness of individuals: Bentham’s Utility as opposed to Singer’s Equal Consideration of InterestsĤThough the basic tenets of utilitarian thought still hold, the doctrine has considerably evolved over the two centuries that separate the two thinkers. The third part will deal with the utilitarian challenge, in other words with positions that John Dinwiddy euphemistically defines as “less congenial” 3 to the majority, namely such issues as infanticide, torture, animal experimentation, the status of the severely handicapped, or the sexual practices of people.

The second part will explore the more precise touchstone of the status of animals, a less central concern for Bentham than for Singer. It will further evaluate whether they are being applied at the societal level (i.e macroethics) or at the individual level (i.e.

The first part will focus on the various definitions of utilitarianism on which the two men’s thinking and ethical concerns are based. 111.ģDoes that make Singer a heir to Bentham’s, a legatee of his theories? In an endeavour to answer that question this paper will follow three approaches. Dinwiddy, Bentham, Oxford, New York, Oxford University Press, 1989, p. Bentham and Singer are interested in different research fields, however, for both of them, ethics must not be based on custom or habit but be evaluated by looking at the consequences of an action (which is where the consequentialist principle originates). Hare at Oxford and examined such questions as the status of animals, the sanctity of human life, the moral obligations of the citizens of rich countries towards the inhabitants of poor countries, the ethics of globalisation, and the rhetoric of George W. He studied under the direction of Richard M. In 1994, when asked what there was about utilitarianism that made it so compelling a doctrine to him, Singer answered “its concreteness.” 2 However unlike Bentham, a jurist who wrote extensively on such topics as the prison system, administrative science, state political organisations, and constitutional, civil, and penal law, Singer is primarily an ethicist. Both have a taste for observable, practical things. 2 “A Conversation with Peter Singer”, The Animals'Agenda, part II, May/June (.)ĢBoth thinkers share a common resilience in the face of sometimes extremely violent criticism, as well as a matter-of-factness and a desire to change the world.