Jeremy bentham theory of utilitarianism
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Jeremy Bentham
Introduction
Jeremy Bentham was born in London in 1748 and died in 1832. He devised the doctrine of utilitarianism, arguing that the ‘greatest happiness of the greatest number is the only right and proper end of government’. He was a major thinker in the fields of legal philosophy and representative democracy, and originated modern ideas of surveillance through his scheme for a Panopticon prison. He supported the idea of equal opportunity in education and his ideas contributed to the foundation of University College London in 1826, the first institution in England to admit students of any race, class or religion and the first to welcome women on equal terms with men. Bentham’s ideas have tremendous relevance to contemporary society; engaging with his thinking helps us to understand better the world we live in today.
Bentham’s Circle
Bentham had many associates and acolytes. He was invited to Bowood, the house of William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne and 1st Marquess of Lansdowne, where he met Samuel Romilly and Étienne Dumont. He was friends with Henry
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Jeremy Bentham was born in 1748 to a wealthy family. A child prodigy, his father sent him to study at Queen’s College, Oxford University, aged 12. Although he never practiced, Bentham trained as a lawyer and wrote extensively on law and legal reform. He died in 1832 at the age of 84 and requested his body and head to be preserved for scientific research. They are currently on display at University College London.
Jeremy Bentham is often regarded as the founder of classical utilitarianism. According to Bentham himself, it was in 1769 he came upon “the principle of utility”, inspired by the writings of Hume, Priestley, Helvétius and Beccaria.1 This is the principle at the foundation of utilitarian ethics, as it states that any action is right insofar as it increases happiness, and wrong insofar as it increases pain. For Bentham, happiness simply meant pleasure and the absence of pain and could be quantified according to its intensity and duration. Famously, he rejected the idea of inalienable natural rights—rights that exist independent of their enforcement by any govern
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Jeremy Bentham
British philosopher, jurist, and social reformer (1748–1832)
This article is about the 18th/19th century British philosopher. For his family's descendant, the historian of the British television series Doctor Who, see Doctor Who Appreciation Society. For the Lost character who used the name as an alias, see John Locke (Lost).
Jeremy Bentham (; 4 February 1747/8O.S. [15 February 1748 N.S.] – 6 June 1832) was an English philosopher, jurist, and social reformer regarded as the founder of modern utilitarianism.[1][2][3][4][5]
Bentham defined as the "fundamental axiom" of his philosophy the principle that "it is the greatest happiness of the greatest number that is the measure of right and wrong."[6] He became a leading theorist in Anglo-Americanphilosophy of law, and a political radical whose ideas influenced the development of welfarism. He advocated individual and economic freedoms, the separation of church and state, freedom of expression, equal rights for women, the right to divorce, and (in an unpu
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