ABSTRACT
John Stuart Mill, the author of Utilitarianism (1861), was a British philosopher, economist, civil servant, political activist, and Member of Parliament. In this he was helped by the philosopher and jurist Jeremy Bentham, generally considered to be the founder of utilitarianism. Utilitarianism is a book dealing with moral philosophy, particularly the question of how we should act and how we should live our lives. Mill argues that happiness is the goal of human life, and that things can only be considered as "good" if they promote human happiness. Mill thinks this first argument can be empirically proven; human beings, he points out, do in fact all try to attain happiness. In the final part of the book Mill discusses the relationship between justice and utility, arguing that justice is also based upon the principle of utility, and that therefore no conflict exists between what is just and what is morally right.
