PHIL221 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Act Utilitarianism

• School: University of Waterloo
• Department: Philosophy
• Course: PHIL221
• Professor: Patricia Marino

Document Summary

Don"t have to talk about rules - they can live without rules if they want. There are some guidelines we should follow which would probably bring about goodness. Generally bring about good outcomes if follow guidelines. If you encounter a situation where it would be a good thing to break guidelines or rules they will break them. Rules that if everyone followed them would promote the best consequences. Rules could be formulated in complex ways. Might be a rule to keep promises and might be a rule to not tell lies - so there is a con ict. If you encounter a con ict between two rules pick the one that brings the best consequence. Considered by some people to be an objection of utilitarianism to break seemingly important rules for not very good reasons. If you know in a particular case that following/breaking the rule would bring about the best consequences you should bring about the best consequences.