John Stuart Mill: Ethics, Happiness, and Justice
John Stuart Mill: Key Ideas
Main Ideas of Positivism
Positivism is the romanticism of science, a commitment to verifiable facts. Science, as a positivist experimental model of rationality, is paramount. Anything beyond observable facts is rejected as unknowable. Science is presented as a uniquely humanitarian guide.
Three States of Law
Mill describes three states of law: the theological (humanity’s initial stage), the metaphysical (maturity), and the positive (where imagination, reason, and observation replace prior states).
The Idea of Positivism
Positivism is the moral will to transform society. Positive moral science facilitates social change and collective happiness. This aligns with the principle of utility: the greatest happiness for the greatest number. Key predecessors include Jeremy Bentham, James Mill, and John Stuart Mill. The foundation of this principle must explain why actions make us happy. It’s an ethics based on utility, explaining why actions leading to happiness should be pursued, unlike duty-based ethics.
Criterion of Morality
Every action is good proportionally to its promotion of happiness and bad proportionally to the reverse. Happiness is pleasure and the absence of pain; unhappiness is pain and the absence of pleasure. Mill distinguishes between higher (intellectual) and lower (bodily) pleasures, with higher pleasures contributing to collective happiness.
Moral Sentiment and Sanctions
Mill addresses the acquisition of moral sentiment and the utilitarian principle’s sanctions. External sanctions involve social pressure (contempt, fear, sympathy), while internal sanctions are feelings of intense pain arising from violating one’s duty, particularly in a well-educated person. This internal feeling is linked to the idea of duty and is essential to consciousness.
Association Between Being and Pleasure
Mill suggests that associations between ideas explain mental phenomena. He emphasizes the link between good and pleasure, virtue and happiness. Happiness isn’t merely a matter of desire but also of habit, making virtuous actions feel good.
Mill on Freedom
Mill champions freedom, equality, and the common good while defending individuality. He argues that collective rules shouldn’t excessively limit individual freedom to protect against harm. Individual liberty should only be restricted to prevent harm to others.
Democracy and the Limits of Majorities
Mill advocates for limiting the power of governing majorities to prevent the tyranny of prevailing opinion and the suppression of diverse thought. He stresses the importance of defending equality and individual freedom, recognizing the role of elites in ensuring that majority rule doesn’t lead to mediocrity and that skilled minorities are heard.
Morality, Justice, and Utility
Mill differentiates morality and justice. Justice involves a correlative right and a moral obligation; it’s distinct from generosity. The feeling of justice stems from a desire to punish those causing harm and identifying the perpetrator. Punishment involves self-defense and sympathy. Mill believes justice, as a crucial part of morality, is based on utility and is more closely related to human welfare than other moral rules. Justice implies individual rights and obligations.