Mill's utilitarian argument supports Singer's utilitarian argument about the obligation of an individual to assist starving people that are in absolute poverty. Although the Mill’s explanation makes Singer’s argument look overdemanding, both philosophers have nearly the same understanding. For instance, Mill claims that people should do good not to impress or profit the world but to achieve self-happiness (Kowalski 177). In doing so, the individual gets to help the world or the society in general. Just like Singer, Mill gives an example where one has a lunch date but on the way, meets a child in need of immediate assistance (Timmons 125). In that case, the person should assist the child, even though in doing so, it means failing to keep the lunch promise. Helping the child will surely bring more happiness to the person, thus maximizing utility. Despite the fact that Mill believes that people should focus on maximizing their utility unlike Singer’s claim that it’s a sole obligation, the two philosophers appreciate the utility derived from assisting other people not to mention the moral ethics in doing so.
Peter Singer’s argument about morality and the utility achieved by helping others is much contested by some of Pojman’s Objection. Particularly, the No-Rest Objection is an explicit assertion that utilitarianism can at times be a false doctrine (Pojman 127). Singer’s claims that middle-income earners should share almost a third of their salary with the poor is quite demanding, and would certainly act as a disincentive to work. In following Singer’s utilitarian approach, many questions would arise. For instance, if helping other will undoubtedly increase individual utility, then people should give all their asset to assist the poor. In doing so, maybe they will maximize their utility. Other assertions made by the objection is the fact that the utilitarian claims would mean that one should not go to the movie with a friend but instead spend that time helping the poor (Pojman 127). Agreeing with Singer would, therefore, mean that an individual should not rest or enjoy life but instead is obligated to sacrifice everything in assisting others. Such as assumption is, therefore, false and should not be accepted.
Works Cited
Kowalski, Dean A. Moral Theory at the Movies: An Introduction to Ethics. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2012. Print.
Pojman, Louis P. How Should We Live: An Introduction to Ethics? Australia: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2005. Print.
Timmons, Mark. Moral Theory: An Introduction., 2013. Print.
