CLASSICAL UTILITARIANISM AND MILL’S DISTINCTION OF PLEASURES
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ROSE GALICHA GANOB
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN ACCOUNTANCY(BSA-1)
JOHN SENEGZ ASTACAAN
MATER DEI COLLEGE
NOVEMBER 9,2025
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AUTHOR'S NOTE
This paper was prepared for ETHICS, to Sir John Senegz Astacaan,on
November 9,2025.
ABSTRACT
This paper explains some the core principles about of classical utilitarianism and
examines John Stuart Mill’s theory through his distinction between higher and
lower pleasures. Classical utilitarianism, developed by philosophers like Jeremy
Bentham, argues that moral actions are one that connect overall happiness or
pleasure for human being or a person. Moreover Bentham’s quantitative
approach depicts all pleasures to equal, to measure morality approach in many
terms of ntensions in life. Mill challenges is by introducing a qualitative
dimension, argues some forms of happiness—such as intellectual and high
pleasures—are important for more valuable than physical daily life being. This
term paper explains and show how Mill’s explains humanizes utilitarian ethics,
embody the focus from the simple higher pleasure to a valuable to understande
of human fulfillment in life and moral worthiness. To compare Bentham’s and
Mill’s perspectivs, the lesson highlights on how Mill’s shows of “higher pleasures”
embody utilitarianism, makes it more valuable to the life of human being and the
importance of genuine human well-being.
INTRODUCTION
John Stewart Mill (1806-1873 CE) introduce two things in this paper. First, he
considerate the common Utilitarianism. Second, he introduces a major modified
his own version of consequentialism from Bentham’s. For Mill, higher-order
pleasures are more valuable than the base, or animalistic pleasures. What sets
us from apart of animals is one of our capacity for high culture, learnings
contentment as a human. Such, as a persons, we should give value and makes
important those pleasures than the animalistic pleasures such as sex, eating,
and [Link] utilitarianism embodying that the greatest achievements is
the greatest happiness, but J.S. Mill argues between pleasures by catching his
own study about higher pleasures, such as for those of the intellectual, of higher
quality of pleasures than lower pleasures, such as those of the senses. Mill
argued that the importance of pleasure is shows us to justify that higher
pleasures embodying not just for by quantity, but also by quality, and that
"competent judges" who have experience this types always approved of the
higher pleasures.
BODY
Mill was brought up as a Benthamite with the explicit intention that he would carry
on the cause of utilitarianism.[30] Mill's book Utilitarianism first appeared as a
series of three articles published in Fraser's Magazine in 1861 and was reprinted
as a single book in 1863.[31][32]
Higher and lower pleasures
Mill rejects a purely quantitative measurement of utility and says:[33]It is quite
compatible with the principle of utility to recognize the fact, that some kinds of
pleasure are more desirable and more valuable than others. It would be absurd
that while, in estimating all other things, quality is considered as well as quantity,
the estimation of pleasures should be supposed to depend on quantity [Link]
word utility is used to mean general well-being or happiness, and Mill's view is
that utility is the consequence of a good action. Utility, within the context of
utilitarianism, refers to people performing actions for social utility. By social utility,
he means the well-being of many people. Mill's explanation of the concept of
utility in his work, Utilitarianism, is that people truly desire happiness, and since
each individual desires their own happiness, it must follow that all of us desire the
happiness of everyone, contributing to a larger social utility. Thus, an action that
results in the greatest pleasure for the utility of society is the best action, or as
Jeremy Bentham, the founder of early Utilitarianism put it, as the greatest
happiness of the greatest number.
CONCLUSION
Classical utilitarianism teaches us human being to the right action that the one
who brings the most valuable meaning to people. Mill makes on those idea by
reminding us that not all pleasures are the same—but it like learning or
improvement, to embody our minds and spirits makes deeply than simple
physical wants. His view makes utilitarianism proves that every human beiñg has
recognize true happiness comes in life from daily life being.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism (London: Parker, Son, and Bourn, West Mill,
J.S. 1998.
Utilitarianism, ed. R. Crisp. Oxford: Oxford University PressStrand, 1863).