Utilitarianism, the moral theory that the right action or policy is the one maximizing aggregate welfare (the "greatest good for the greatest number"), is examined through two major objections: that aggregating costs and benefits into a single measurable quantity (as in cost-benefit analysis, including monetary valuation of human life) may fail to capture incommensurable values, and that maximizing collective utility can override individual or minority rights. John Stuart Mill's revision attempts to answer these objections from within utilitarian premises by distinguishing qualitatively higher from lower pleasures (via the preference of one who has experienced both) and by grounding justice and rights in long-run social utility, raising the question of whether such moves remain consistent with strict utilitarian foundations.
Utilitarianism, the moral theory that the right action or policy is the one maximizing aggregate welfare (the "greatest good for the greatest number"), is examined through two major objections: that …