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Philosophy

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Philosophy

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PHL263 Social Ethics

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The Golden Rule, Mill, and Kant’s Ethics Scrutinized

The Golden Rule is probably one of the most commonly taught tenets of wisdom taught

to people even from an early age. The adage that goes, “do unto others what you want others

to do you” is prevalent in a lot of cultures and religions, as it focuses on the common

principle to do good. Another name given to this rule is the Ethic of Reciprocity. This rule is

considered to be a principle that encompasses everything about ethics. This rule is

fundamental in many philosophies, cultures, ethical systems, traditions, and even in some

parts of maths. Because it crosses many types of philosophies and traditions, people say that

the Golden Rule actually has heavy moral authority. As the rule has deep roots in various

cultures and religions, one can say that it may be used by different organizations to resolve

any conflicts that they have. The Golden Rule can be used by the global society as a

foundation to create a more sustainable world (Scarboro Missions, n.d.). Two ethical theories

have been linked to the Golden Rule, and these are John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism and

Immanuel Kant’s Categorical Imperative. A closer analysis and assessment will be done to

see if these theories can be considered related or as forms of the Golden Rule.

Utilitarianism by John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill wrote his essay Utilitarianism as a way of giving a backbone as to how

utilitarianism is when used as a moral theory. He also addressed the different wrong notions

of the concept to others. According to Mill, utilitarianism is rooted on the principle that

actions are good and right when they gear towards the promotion of happiness, and they are

wrong and bad when they produce the opposite. According to him, the definition of happiness

is when a person feels pleasure and there is no pain. He also adds that achieving goals and

aspirations can be counted as part of a person’s happiness.

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Mill continues that the basic or innate sentiments of a person actually comes from one’s

social nature. This is why he argues that if utilitarianism was taken into consideration by

society as a basis for ethics, the standards that it gives are morally binding. Why is that so?

This is because people would naturally gravitate towards the standards. Mill also says that the

main and only basis of morality is a person’s happiness; the main thing that people desire and

aim for is happiness. He shows support to this by showing that people desire things that will

help them achieve that goal or will make them happy. He also includes in his essay that the

concept of justice is based on the people’s need. People’s rights are put in place due to the

need for people to achieve happiness (Spark Notes, n.d.).

Mill’s doctrine on higher pleasures revolves around objective pleasures, which is a direct

answer to those who think that his thinking focuses on hedonism. It actually is anti-hedonistic

in nature. Hedonists claim that an activity’s ability to give pleasure is proportional to its

extrinsic value. In Utilitarianism, intellectual pursuits have a value that is not proportionate to

the amount of pleasure or contentment produced for one’s mental state. Another thing is that

everybody’s pleasure is sought after, not just one’s own. Next, Mill says that the intellectual

activities hold more value than things from a lower order, such as physical pleasures

(“Utilitarianism”). Traditional hedonism maintains that the only intrinsic good focuses on

man’s pleasure-seeking tendencies or mental state and that no activity can have intrinsic

value that is more than others as they only hold extrinsic values (Spark Notes, n.d.).

Mill continues that once a person has become enlightened, he will not revert nor prefer to

be ignorant again. Because of this, he will establish better conditions that will help him

achieve the end state of pleasure. Utilitarianism holds the importance of equality among

people, as well as respect and dignity for everyone, which makes it similar to the Golden

Rule. Mill says that among all of the human needs, dignity and self-worth are the most

important and needed in order to achieve individual happiness, as well as the communal one.

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The Golden Rule, Mill, and Kant’s Ethics Scrutinized The Golden Rule is probably one of the most commonly taught tenets of wisdom taught to people even from an early age. The adage that goes, “do unto others what you want others to do you” is prevalent in a lot of cultures and religions, as it focuses on the common principle to do good. Another name given to this rule is the Ethic of Reciprocity. This rule is considered to be a principle that encompasses everything about ethics. This rule is fundamental in many philosophies, cultures, ethical systems, traditions, and even in some parts of maths. Because it crosses many types of philosophies and traditions, people say that the Golden Rule actually has heavy moral authority. As the rule has deep roots in various cultures and religions, one can say that it may be used by different organizations to resolve any conflicts that they have. The Golden Rule can be used by the global society as a foundation to create a more sustainable world (Scarboro Missions, n.d.). Two ethical theories have been linked to the Golden Rule, and these are John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism and Immanuel Kant’s Categorical Imperative. A closer analysis and assessment will be done to see if these theories can be considered related or as forms of the Golden Rule. Utilitarianism by John Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill wrote his essay Utilitarianism as a way of giving a backbone as to how utilitarianism is when used as a moral theory. He also addressed ...
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