An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation

The compensatory effects of inner and outer controls

“…Against this viewpoint, it may be argued that SAT rests upon different assumptions about human nature. Control theory is based on the classical theory of human behavior, which holds that people pursue self-interest by seeking pleasure and avoiding pain (Bentham, 1988(Bentham, [1789). SAT, on the other hand, posits that individuals are rule-guided creatures who share a natural inclination to orientate themselves by and act in accordance with moral rules (Wikström and Treiber, 2016).…”

Chiens sentients : du langage émotif au discours critique

“…D'ailleurs, selon ce neurologue, il existe un état d'émotion, qui peut être déclenché et exécuté d'une façon inconsciente, un état de sentiment, qui peut être représenté inconsciemment, et un état de sentiment qui devient conscient, tout en étant reconnu par l'organisme qui ressent de l'émotion et du sentiment (2000b : 75) 12 . À l'instar des hommes, les animaux sont sentients : d'ailleurs, cette souffrance qu'ils partagent avec l'être humain s'avère l'un des fondements de la considération éthique que l'on éprouve à leur égard (Bentham 1789).…”

David Hume Is Pontiff of the World: Thomas Carlyle on Epicureanism, Laissez-Faire, and Public Opinion

“…63 Moreover, he also shared their beliefs regarding the motives of human action, writing: "Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure." 64 According to Bentham, "Good" meant nothing more than "pleasure or exemption from pain," while "Evil" meant "pain or loss of pleasure." 65 As such, any action could "be said to be conformable to the principle of utility … when the tendency it has to augment the happiness of the community is greater than any it has to diminish it."…”

“…When men applauded the "virtue" of an action, they were really expressing "a sentiment of appropriation; a sentiment which, when applied to an action, approves of its utility." 66 Setting out from the same premises as Epicurus and Hume, Bentham drew a series of political conclusions far more radical than anything his two predecessors had envisaged. Given that the end of government was "happiness" and given that each individual was the "proper judge" of his own "pleasure," some form of democratic representation would be necessary.…”