Criticism of the Utilitarian Theory

Running head: CRITICISM OF THE UTILITARIAN THEORY
Criticism of the Utilitarian Theory
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CRITICISM OF THE UTILITARIAN THEORY
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Introduction
Many theories with respect to human behavior have merged within the field of political
science and sociology. The understanding of such human behavior is necessary in order to
determine how the world functions (Mill, 2016). In this regard, the theory of utilitarianism
emerged as one of the many philosophies which tried to make sense of the way such people
behave. The purpose of this essay is to understand the views of William and Satre and how they
argued against the main principles of utilitarianism. To this extent, the essay tries to determine
the validity of their criticisms. The essay concludes with the significant contributions made by
the theory of utilitarianism and the need to understand this theory.
Theory of Utilitarianism
The theory of utilitarianism emerged in the latter half of the eighteenth century where it
was propounded by the scholars John Stuart Mill and Jeremy Bentham (Riley, 2016). According
to their opinion, the action which is considered to be morally and ethically right if it promotes the
aspect of happiness among the individuals of the society (Riley, 2016). On the other hand, if the
action leads to the rise in resentment and unhappiness of the individuals of the community, then
it is known as an undesirable or morally wrong action. However, it needs to be noted that the
theory of utilitarianism is different from the theory of ethics since the wrongness or rightness of
the action is dependent on the aspect of how much sadness or happiness it gives to the
individuals. Thus, it is dependent on the motive of the person rather than on the ethics attached
with the execution of the action.

CRITICISM OF THE UTILITARIAN THEORY
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Bernard William’s criticism of utilitarianism
William was a twentieth century philosopher who actively rejected the idea that ethics
can be codified in to moral theories and concepts. To this extent, he emerged as one of the
pertinent critics of the philosophy of Kantianism and especially that of the theory of
utilitarianism (Qizilbash, 2016). He believed that the entire field of ethics is too abstract to find
proper representation within the narrow aspect of a methodical moral theory. It is this attempt by
the theory of utilitarianism, to constrict the ideas of ethics within a theory, which made Williams
criticize against it. He opined that theories imbibe within itself the idea that there exists many
different ethical concepts, many of which turn out to be prejudices (Diamond, 2018).
Another point of concern for Williams was that the theory of utilitarianism tells to the
people the way they should react or feel about a particular incident. To this extent, the theory had
the same problem attached to it which is the understanding of the authority behind the theory that
gave it the right to determine the moral sentiments of the people.
Another point of conflict that was observed by Williams within the theory of
utilitarianism was the denial of ethical considerations that was attached to this theory (Motilal,
2015). For instance, this theory and every other related theory stated that a moral conflict exists
within the theory with respect to rationalization of the cause and effect. Such theories insists on
the persistence of generality where morality is made s8bjective in nature and therefore, differs
from one situation to the other.
Sartre’s criticism of the theory of utilitarianism
Jean Paul Sartre was a twentieth century philosopher. He was of the idea that the ethical
theories such as the theories of utilitarianism, deontological, natural law and that of the contract