Similarities Between Act Utilitarianism and Ethical Egoism

Consequentialism is a group of ethical theories. Its central point is that the moral value of each particular action can be judged only in terms of the consequences that arose from it. Typical representatives of the consequentialism are the utilitarianism and the ethical egoism. They are both theories, focusing on the outcomes as the primary motivation of an action. The results from a particular action are the basis for the assessment whether it is ethical or not.

What is Act Utilitarianism?

Utilitarianism is a direction in ethics, according to which the moral value of an action or behavior is determined primarily by its usefulness. Apart from ethics, utilitarianism is also a trend in the social philosophy and economics.

According to the utilitarianists, every act is morally justified only when it produces at least as much benefit to all affected by it as any alternative action that the person can do. The principle of greatest happiness (formulated by John Stuart Mill) states that one should always act in such a way as to bring him/herself the greatest happiness.

Two types of questions are central to the debate about whether utilitarianism is an adequate or true moral theory:

• Whether and how the utilitarianism can be clearly and precisely formulated and applied;
• Whether the moral implications of the utilitarianism in specific cases are acceptable or not.

Another question is whether the utilitarian principle should be applied to individual acts or to some form of moral rule. In this regard there are two main types of utilitarianism:

• rules utilitarianism
• act utilitarianism

According to the rules utilitarianism, individual acts are judged in theory, not only in practice, according to whether they are subject to a justified moral rule, and the utilitarian criterion applies only to common rules.

According to the act utilitarianism, if a particular act is right or not depends only on the use it generates in comparison with its possible alternatives. The act utilitarianists, however, agree that in most cases empirical rules like “Keep your promises” can be used in practice because their pursuit maximizes the generate uses.

What is Ethical Egoism

According to the ethical egoism a particular action, whose consequences will bring benefits to the doer is ethical in this sense. It claims that one’s own good is in line with morality. In the strong version, the ethical egoism claims that it is moral to benefit one’s own good, and it is not moral not to benefit it. In the weak version the ethical egoism claims that although it is moral to benefit one’s own good, it is not obligatory not moral to not benefit it. This means that in certain circumstances the avoidance of one’s own interest can also be a moral action.

However, in the ethical egoism, the doer of a particular action does not necessarily cause any harm to the interests of others. The actions that lead to one’s benefit can incidentally have a neutral, beneficial or negative effect on others. The others’ well-being and interest can be disregarded or not, as far as what is chosen brings benefits to the doer of the particular action.

Ethical egoism was firstly described by the philosopher H. Sidgwick. He compared egoism to the utilitarianism, but according to him whereas utilitarianism aims to maximize overall well-being, the egoism aims to maximize individual well-being.

Ethical egoism can be divided into the following categories:

• personal – acting in your own interest,
• individual – everybody has to act in one individual’s interest,
• universal – everybody has to act in their own interest.

Similarities Between Act Utilitarianism and Ethical Egoism

1. Both act utilitarianism and ethical egoism are theories within the consequentialism.
2. The central point in act utilitarianism and ethical egoism is that the moral value of each particular action can be judged only in terms of the consequences that arose from it.
3. Both act utilitarianism and ethical egoism aim to bring benefits – act utilitarianism aims to maximize overall well-being, the ethical egoism aims to maximize individual well-being.

Summary:

• Act utilitarianism and ethical egoism are theories within the consequentialism.
• According to the act utilitarianism, if a particular act is right or not depends only on the use it generates in comparison with its possible alternatives.
• According to the ethical egoism a particular action, whose consequences will bring benefits to the doer is ethical in this sense.
• The central point in act utilitarianism and ethical egoism is that the moral value of each particular action can be judged only in terms of the consequences that arose from it. They both aim to bring benefits – act utilitarianism aims to maximize overall well-being, the ethical egoism aims to maximize individual well-being.