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Example research essay topic: Greatest Happiness Principle John Stuart Mill - 1,314 words

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... urt, anguish, and despair. Yet, shouldnt we strive to provide a good future for all? This concept of the most amount of good for the most amount of people is called Utilitarianism. Contrary to popular belief, the United States doesnt believe in such a state of being. Instead, through capitalism and economic globalization the United States has proven to believe in the exact opposite of utilitarianism.

The United States has always been based on the principles of capitalism; however, the present economy is far from being the free enterprise system it was once envisioned as. The major change the United States made was directing the system away from competition. The result is a society dominated by mega corporations that control demand rather then respond to the demands of the market. To break down the previous statement the corporations are so in control of their products price that they can charge whatever they see fit. (Eitzen and Zinn 27) The reason for this is lack of competition in a capitalistic society. Karl Marx a social theorist of the 1800 s believed that the basis of social order in every society is the production of economic goods. The concepts of what is produced, how its produced, and how its exchanged determines the differences in peoples wealth, power, and social status. (Eitzen and Zinn 28) Marx argued that because human beings must organize their activities, in order to clothe, feed, and house themselves, every society is based upon an economic base.

The form that people chose to solve their basic economic problems would, according to Marx, eventually determine virtually everything in a social structure. A social structure can include such ideas as family structure, education, and religion. In Marx's view these social structures depend on a base economy. To apply Marx idea, keep in mind the United States is a capitalist society. Moving on Marx argued that every economic system except socialism produces a force that eventually leads to a new economic form. For example, in a feudal system the market and factory emerged but were not capable of a feudal way of life.

The market in return created a class based system in which Feudalism was replaced by capitalism; land ownership was replaced by factories and the ownership of capital. Capitalism, Marx maintained, also carries its own self destruct button. Capitalism will produce a class of oppressed people bent on destroying the system itself. (Eitzen and Zinn 28) The first of the four flaws Marx saw in capitalism is the inevitability of monopolies, which eliminates competition and hurts consumers and workers. The second flaw is the lack of centralized planning, which results in overproduction of some goods and underproduction of other goods. This flaw encourages inflation, slumps, and depressions.

The third flaw is of that of the machine. The demand for hi-tech labor-saving machinery will always be around, and with this new technology comes unemployment and an unhappy workforce. Lastly, the fourth flaw relates to the control of the state in which we are in by the wealthy. The effect of which is passage of laws favoring their class. The United States, being a capitalistic country is experiencing many of the flaws Marx predicted.

This produces a totem pole effect, where the rich sit on top and the poor rest at the bottom. Comparing the current ethics of the United States it is found that society is running in a social darwinistic mode, meaning survival of the fittest. This form of ethics is closely related to John Beverley Robinsons definition of Egoism, which is the realization by the individual that he is above all institutions and all formulas; that they exist only so far as he chooses to make them his own by accepting them. (Ott 47) In step with Marx theory we can clearly distinguish that the United States chooses the same path and not that of the wise. John Stuart Mill once referred to the followers of Utilitarianism as the wise. (Kozol 175) John Stuart Mill was the pupil of Jeremy Bentham, a well known philosopher having created Utilitarianism. Bentham's mission in life was to reform law, government, and economics to make them serve the principle of utility, or the greatest happiness principle. (Eitzen and Zinn 109) John Stuart Mill later became the upholder of Utilitarianism as he defended its theory and principles. Mill went so far as to write a book called Utilitarianism.

Mill describes Utilitarianism as the greatest happiness principle, is the ultimate principle of morality. Related back to the shape the United States s in, we can truly say that Utilitarianism is nonexistent. The wealthy that are in power create a status quo in which no progress is made. The system is maintained by the ignorance of the lower classes and the wealth and power of the upper classes. In thus, we have the power elite creating a class system, creating racial and gender bias, destroying third world nations, and Americanizing the rest of the world.

The outcome is merely years away Holland is every conservatives nightmare come true. Legal prostitution, coffee houses that sell marijuana to teens, give away free needles to drug users, euthanasia in hospitals. To Americans, such policies represent a moral breakdown. But, in belief with Utilitarianism, Judge Frits Rate believes the greater the happiness the less unhappiness. Legalization allows the government much more flexibility than criminalization. For example, prostitutes must undergo regular health examinations. (Eitzen and Zinn 482) On result is an astonishingly low rate of AIDS infection: less than one percent, compared to the thirty to forty percent among Americans.

Clean needles for intravenous drug users slow AIDS transmission among a ground that now accounts for half the AIDS population in New York. (Eitzen and Zinn 482) As for drug users, allowing sale of marijuana gives the government much more credibility when it warns the young about the dangers of hard drugs. Crack Cocaine use is virtually non-existent in Holland. All Dutch schools teach sex education. A years worth of birth control pills costs about ten dollars. Yet, Dutch girls are no more sexually active than American girls. And ninety percent of those teen-agers who are active use contraceptives. (Eitzen and Zinn 482) The success of the system is amazing.

Amsterdam suffers a housing problem incomprehensible to American city planners. Sufficient housing exists for those of modest means, but theres not enough for the rich. Such abundance is happiness that the Dutch have began to experience the benefits such as longer lives, a robust economy, and fiercely competitive businesses. This is not to say the United States should change to the state Holland is in, but merely to imply that the U.

S. needs to work on its current system and change its ways before the problem has matured. Utilitarianism, one of many western ethical principles, has the potential to do much good in the United States. By ridding the capitalistic rule and searching for the ultimate pleasure all persons will benefit, leaving no person homeless, no person hungry, and no person unhappy. The United States has the power, wealth, and potential to reign, but the utilities must be used in the power way. Then society has created a world much closer to perfection.

The Dutch watch our descent into social anarchy in amazement. They cannot understand why a nation would willfully destroy itself to control its citizens personal behavior. After seeing how well tolerance and mutual respect work neither can I. With a better understanding of society, culture, Utilitarianism we can further the United States to its peak atop the mountain. Works Cited D. S.

Eitzen, and M. B. Zinn. Social Problems. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon, 2000. Kozol, Jonathan.

Amazing Grace. Crown, NY: HarperPerenial, 1995. Ott, Michael R. Max Horkheimers Critical Theory of Religion. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 2001. T.

Shanahan, and R. Wang. Reason and Insight. Detroit, MI:


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Research essay sample on Greatest Happiness Principle John Stuart Mill

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