CHAPTER IV. The Method of Utilitarianism

THE METHOD OF UTILITARIANISM

1. Ought a Utilitarian, then, to accept the Morality of Common Sense provisionally as a body of Utilitarian doctrine? Not quite; for even accepting the theory that the Moral Sense is derived from Sympathy, we can discern several causes that must have operated to produce a divergence between Common Sense and a perfectly Utilitarian code of morality. 460-467

2. At the same time it seems idle to try to construct such a code in any other way than by taking Positive Morality as our basis. 467-471

3. If General Happiness be the ultimate end, it is not reasonable to adopt “social health” or “efficiency” as the practically ultimate criterion of morality. 471-474