Principia Ethica Essays

In A Theory of Justice, Rawls describes justice as “the first virtue of social institutions”, and as a matter of fairness. He sets out his aim for a theory building on the social contract idea, as a feasible alternative to classical utilitarian conceptions of justice (Rawls, 1971, p. 3). In seeking an alternative to utilitarianism, Rawls argues against what he regards as the prevailing dominant theory. He comments that in the utilitarian view of justice “it does not matter, except indirectly, how

Westfield State University cultivates the knowledge, skills, and character essential for students to reach their full potential and become responsible leaders in today’s society. Westfield contributes to the economic, social, and cultural essence of Hampden county, Massachusetts. Westfield is ranked thirty-eight out of the top forty-eighth public schools in regional university north. Westfield State University is accredited by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education, this accreditation

John Stuart Mill was a pioneer in liberalism, combining his knowledge of 18th century concepts with the emerging 19th century romanticism concepts (1). Born in 1806, Mill was educated by his father, a disciplinarian who enforced his beliefs onto Mill. Along with philosopher Jeremy Bentham, they encouraged Mill in their liberal beliefs (3). He studied Latin and Greek from the early age of 8 which progressed to his studies in political economy, logic and calculus as a teenager (1). Mill eventually

This informal association was based on friendship and interest in the arts, and it derived many of its attitudes from George Edward Moore’s (1873-1958) Principia Ethica (1903); By far the most valuable things...are...the pleasure of human intercourse and the enjoyment of beautiful objects; ...it is they...that form the rational ultimate end of social progress. (Drabble 113) Its members were in conscious revolt

In his earlier years, Russell was greatly influenced by G.E.Moore 's Principia Ethica. Along with Moore, he then believed that moral facts were objective, but known only through intuition; that they were simple properties of objects, not equivalent to the natural objects to which they are often ascribed. Yet another of Russell’s

Utilitarianism is an ethical doctrine explicitly formulated in the late eighteenth century and since then has had many supporters, particularly in the Anglo world. As its name suggests, its substance is to define the correction of any action by its utility, ie, for the results or consequences resulting from it. Hence this doctrine is also known by the name of consequentialism. The creator and configurator of utilitarianism was Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) with his Introduction to the Principles of