The utilitarian philosophy is based on the concept of the greatest happiness of the greatest number. The theory was proposed by thinkers such as Bentham and later on modified by JS Mill.

They believe that to secure the happiness of a larger number of people , it is okay to sacrifice the interests of a few. It assess its actions in terms of its outcome, i.e., benefiting a greater number of public.

The thinkers explain the situation through a trolly example where one person’s life can be sacrificed, to protect 4-5 persons standing in front of the moving trolly, as the death of that one person will alert the others and hence more number of lives can be saved.

Utilitarianism and Governance

The utilitarian philosophy provides government the basis of securing the interests of a large number of individuals and its long term impact. For example: If wealth tax/more tax is levied on fewer richer individuals to provide better living to a larger number of poor people, then it is justified.

Another example: When a person severely infected with COVID-19 is kept under strict quarantine without any relaxation, then the utilitarian philosophy justifies it, as it protects a larger number of people from getting infected.