The origins of utilitarianism, the ethical doctrine…

The origins of utilitarianism, the ethical doctrine that the moral worth of an action is determined solely by its contribution to overall utility are often traced back as far as the Greek philosopher Epicurus, but as a specific school of thought, it is generally credited to English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer Jeremy Bentham, who found pain and pleasure to be the only intrinsic values in the world: "nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure."

From this he derived the rule of utility, that the good is whatever brings the greatest happiness to the greatest number of people.

Later, after realizing that the formulation recognized two different and potentially conflicting principles, he dropped the second part and talked simply about "the greatest happiness principle."

Bentham's foremost proponent was James Mill, a significant philosopher in his day and the father of John Stuart Mill.

The younger Mill was educated according to Bentham's principles, including transcribing and summarizing much of his father's work whilst still in his teens.

Mill had in 1856 become secretary of the East India Company, which he has served for 33 years.

In his famous short work, Utilitarianism, published in 1863, John Stuart Mill argues that cultural, intellectual, and spiritual pleasures are of greater value than mere physical pleasure, because the former would be valued more highly by competent judges than the latter.

A competent judge, according to Mill, is anyone who has experienced both the lower pleasures and the higher.

Like Bentham's formulation, Mill's utilitarianism is hedonistic, because it deals with pleasure or happiness.