Punishment and Discretion in Mill's Utilitarianism
Utilitas 27 (2):165-178 (2015)
Abstract
I argue that a notorious passage from Utilitarianism concerning the relationship between morality and blameworthiness need not be an obstacle to a consistent act-utilitarian interpretation of Mill's moral theory. First, the Art of Life provides a framework for reconciling Mill's evaluation of conduct in terms of both expediency and blameworthiness. Like contemporary sophisticated act-utilitarians, Mill treats expediency as the more fundamental category of evaluation. Second, textual evidence suggests that, on Mill's view, evaluations of blameworthiness are not strictly bound by rules, despite rule-ish considerations about punishment and discretion. Third, Mill's own jurisdictional account in terms of competent decision-making remains consistent with the act-utilitarian interpretationAuthor's Profile
DOI
10.1017/s0953820814000326
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Citations of this work
Bain's Theory of Moral Judgment and the Development of Mill's Utilitarianism.Aaron Zimmerman - 2022 - Utilitas 34 (4):409-427.
Moral Universality in J.S. Mill’s Utilitarianism.Roman S. Platonov - 2019 - Russian Journal of Philosophical Sciences 62 (11):84-95.
References found in this work
Alienation, consequentialism, and the demands of morality.Peter Railton - 1984 - Philosophy and Public Affairs 13 (2):134-171.
How Thinking about Character and Utilitarianism Might Lead to Rethinking the Character of Utilitarianism.Peter Railton - 1988 - Midwest Studies in Philosophy 13 (1):398-416.
The absolutism problem in On Liberty.Piers Norris Turner - 2013 - Canadian Journal of Philosophy 43 (3):322-340.
Rights, Welfare, and Mill’s Moral Theory.David O. Brink - 1997 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 57 (3):713-717.