ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with the more detailed defence of the view by showing that respect for persons is the ultimate principle presupposed in ordinary judgments of social morality. It suggests the partial truth of utilitarianism as a theory of public or social morality. The chapter describes the utilitarianism by showing how it can accommodate the existence of moral rules and social institutions. It also suggests that rights are claims of privilege, asserting an inequality which, if justifiable at all, is justifiable in terms of majority interest. The concept of 'relevant differences' between people is thus an important one in connexion with equality. The chapter discusses some concrete examples of the interplay of the principles of utility and equality. It also suggests that ordinary moral attitudes require people to modify the requirements of utility yet further by making room for another principle – that of liberty.
