Synopsis
Bentham's founding utilitarian work, grounding morality and law in the maximization of pleasure and minimization of pain across society.
Core passage idea
Paraphrase · Public domainRight action and good law are whatever produce the greatest happiness for the greatest number, measured by the balance of pleasure over pain.
It makes a single calculable standard, aggregate welfare, the test of every moral rule and legal institution.
To avoid a bubble
Pair with Immanuel Kant, Groundwork.
Reading note
Read the early chapters on the principle of utility closely; the later legal taxonomy is more technical.
Best paired with
Immanuel Kant, Groundwork