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What is my utilitarianism?




I am a utilitarian.

Do you know how hard it is to live as a utilitarian these days? You often get mocked in closer circles. In the pretentious places, you are looked down upon. You are generally pushed to feel like a flying swine - strange, curious and out of place.

The problem is the word ‘utility’ in it. The commoners derive a shallow meaning that it is utility before happiness. Utility before pleasure. Stretching it a bit, they think that a utilitarian denies pleasures, leads a boring life of a miser, does not appreciate finer things in life and is generally a philistine.

But utilitarianism is exactly opposite of that. I will be a damned liar if I declare that I am holy and have renounced all the pleasures. The tricky thing, and here in lies a great secret about the art of living, is to understand what pleasure really is. I think there is such a thing as ‘supreme’ pleasure. And by virtue of the existence of a supreme pleasure, there are also ‘inferior’ pleasures. How can we define superior and inferior pleasures?

If I ask you all about the pleasures of a $6000 Longines watch, I don’t think I will get a consistent reply. Because, if your hand is a decorated stand to a $15000 Rolex, the Longines is not up to your mark. But what if I ask you about the pleasures of ‘Dignity’? Freedom of choice? Love? Being charitable? Striving towards uplifting humanity? I hope you are getting the drift. Let me try and make it more explicit.

Life is just a pursuit of pleasures. If there is a pleasure that most of us have no dissonance in agreeing with, then that is the 'superior' pleasure. That is what a utilitarian is after.

As an example, buying into material consumerism for pleasure only works the opposite. Its discontentment at the end of it all. How often do you see people visiting temples but only end up comparing their outfits with others. So, if an utilitarian has enough money, will he buy a home on the cliff overlooking the sea? He will, IF and ONLY IF it would buy him a certain freedom from the hustle when he is working on nobler things in life. Not in a bid to enter into a certain class in the society.

You can all test this in simple things. For the next Valentine’s Day, instead of spending money buying a gift to your woman, try and cook for her!

And that, my friends, is my utilitarianism.
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Comments

  1. UnknownMarch 10, 2011 at 12:33 AM

    I am sorry...while i see where you are going with this and agree partially, I still didn't get the definition of utilitarianism... Can you define it in one line please for us? :)

    Ram

    ReplyDelete
  2. Raja SPMarch 10, 2011 at 8:49 AM

    Thanks Ram, I have updated it :)

    ReplyDelete

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