Utilitarianism in the Light of Cognitivism and Non-Cognitivism - Essay Example

Utilitarianism in the Light of Cognitivism and Non-Cognitivism [by] [Author’s name] [Name of the Institution] [Subject and code] [Date of fulfillment] Utilitarianism in the Light of Cognitivism and Non-Cognitivism introduction The aim of this paper is to make an analytical persuasion towards the moral and ethical understanding of utilitarian thoughts. The initiations and the determination of the utilitarian aspects are studied under the cognitivism and non-cognitivism domains. The cognitivism and the non-cognitivism systems of dealing with utilitarian notion bring in the well analytical persuasion of the utilitarian philosophical applicability of life. The main focus of this essay is to check out whether or not the statement is true. "I ought to act to the greatest happiness of all" This is also in reference to the extension made for the goodness that needs to be justified for the analysis of the truth and beauty. This paper tries to justify the notions that can bring in the illustrative and practical aspects related to the theme of happiness or pleasure. The determination of the state of happiness and pleasure, though variable under different circumstances, are bracketed by many people who make an assessment on the basis of their experiences and these experiences get collected through the cognitivism and the non-cognitivism grounded in practical groundings of life. The relevance, thus, is very much interrelated and utilitarian philosophical aspects thus depend a lot over the cognitivism and the non-cognitivism aspects. understanding utilitarian The process of utilitarianism is a kind of development of ideas that gets related to the moral worth in a particularised formulation of an action. It is the determined process that is solely in contribution to the application of the overall utility. It is here that the contribution gets recognised to happiness or the static mode of pleasure. Further it gets summed up within the unification of community. In a way there are considerations that make utilitarianism an entity of consequentialism. As a result of this the moral worth of any determined action gets recognised by its outcomes. Utility is thus the provision to maximise the good that is to synchronise the process of happiness or pleasure as against the instances of suffering or pain. It is in a way defined as a satisfaction of preferences (Peter Singer, 1993). The most appropriate definition can be well realised through the phrase ‘the greatest good for the greatest number’. In such elaborations the concept of utilitarianism can get well characterised as a kind of quantitative and well established but reductionist approach to ethics. In a way the term utilitarian is an approach related to the narrow economic or the pragmatic viewpoint. The concept and the usability of philosophical utilitarianism, is considerably much broader and approaches all the cognitive as well as non-cognitive peripheries. It is very necessary to understand the notions of happiness and pleasure and they differ as per the individualistic preferences. Some matters related to happiness and pleasure for one may be considered as vague and vulgar by other. It is very hard to universalise it to justify from a single point of view. It is therefore very necessary to make a well structured platform for the distribution and elaboration of the themes related to truth and beauty under philosophical approaches (Brad Hooker, 1996). The application of cognitivism and non-cognitivism will, thus, support the means for the establishment of the same on practical provisions. Through cognitivism there can be the propositions related to the notions of what is correct and ethically accepted on majority basis. On the other hand the non-cognitivism will bring in the preference of ambiguity under the same perspective. The non-cognitivism is very particular in dealing both the negative and the positive aspects of social and philosophical life. The utilitarian philosophy is more dependable over universal acceptability and that gets well supported by the justifications forwarded by the cognitivism and the non-cognitivism philosophical initiations. Utilitarianism in Cognitivism It is the entity of consequentialism in utilitarianism that gets influenced by the cognitive understanding of happiness and pleasure. In order to justify, "I ought to act to the greatest happiness of all", the cognitive belief of expressing all kinds of propositions gets elaborated in terms of positive affiliation. There is an absolute and very agreeable position created under cognitive philosophy for appropriateness in utilitarian philosophical acceptance. The application of utilitarianism in the peripheral consequences of cognitivism has been well explored and analysed. The concept of cognitivism is basically the meta-ethical view regarding the ethical sentences that are structured to express all kinds of propositions. These are maintained under the utilitarian provision of a state that determines an ambiguous condition of true or false. These are all very much a part of having the truth-apt as against the positions denied by non-cognitivists. The utilitarian perspectives hold that the practices and states related to cognitivism can well encompass the peripheral dominance of moral realism, moral subjectivism and error theory. The aspects in relation to the moral realism has got the claims that are very much ethical in structure and well expresses the propositions that are about the utilitarian state of the mind-independent facts in the existing world. In respect to the consequences related to moral subjectivism, there is the claim that reconsiders the utilitarian ethical sentences for the well elaborated expressions and propositions about the utilitarian state that persists among the peoples' opinions or the preconceived attitudes. In respect to the domain under the error theory, there is the static claim that notions in relation to the ethical sentences are well structured for the declaration and expressions of propositions. Under utilitarian elaboration this further is considered as a false entity in relevance to any kind of nature. Utilitarianism in Non-cognitivism The perspectives related to the utilitarian notions in reference to non-cognitivism have got immense dominance. The circumstantial persuasion of non-cognitivism is the notion that gets speculated under the dominance of the meta-ethical view (Garner, Richard T.; Bernard Rosen 1967). This particularised view point in an ethical sentence is not very expressive and is very much in propositions. It is here that the utilitarian influence brings in the state where the propositions are questioned in terms of being true or false. As a matter of fact they are not truth-apt. A non-cognitivist is very sure of making a very straight denial to the cognitivist claim regarding the moral judgement. It is under the speculative influence of utilitarianism that the non-cognitivism denies that moral judgments are capable of being objectively true, because they describe some feature of the world." --- Garner, Richard T.; Bernard Rosen (1967). It has been well accepted that if there are the moral statements that are not true, and if under any circumstance one cannot have the knowledge that something is not true, then noncognitivism gets implies that the establishment of the moral knowledge turns impossible. The utilitarian influence holds that the non-cognitivism can well entail all kinds of non-cognitive attitudes; these are the notions that underlie the tidings related to the moral discourse. It is this discourse that expresses that there are the possibilities of having non-declarative speech acts. Though there is the process of accepting that the surface features are determined very consistently and efficiently for the performances led by the work, this is specifically in concern to the moral discourse that are recognised as cognitive. The utilitarian system gets the influence for the point of well interpreting the moral claims that are in most consequences selected as non-declarative speech acts. The purpose is to explain what moral claims can neither be true nor false. As stated in "Moral Cognitivism vs. Non-Cognitivism", the philosophical understanding has been well maintained through the aspects of logical positivism. Thus the non-cognitivism brings in a very well distinct and well structured position for the application of utilitarian form of philosophical purpose. These are the provisions made by non-cognitivism for the declarations made by utilitarian. Conclusion The approaches of justifying the utility of happiness and pleasure of utilitarian philosophical persuasion can be well established through the cognitivism and the non-cognitivism philosophical approaches. The cognitive persuasion of utility related to acceptability of happiness and pleasure gets the provision to maximise the whole system of synchronising the process. Under cognitive light the utilitarian objectives of happiness or pleasure are justified against all kinds of instances related to suffering or pain. The process under cogntivism brings in the absolute definition for the satisfaction of preferences within the determination of ethical notions. As for the persuasion hold by the non-cognitivism philosophical aspects for the establishment and justification of utilitarian ethical notions, there is a straight negation to the acceptability of moral claims. Thus it can be well determined that the utilitarian philosophies can be well synchronised through cognitivism and non-cognitivism ethical and moral acceptances. The belief is that the utilitarian process can be made well versed and appropriate through the wider explanatory platform of cognitivism and non-cognitivism statements. References Garner, Richard T.; Bernard Rosen (1967), Moral Philosophy: A Systematic Introduction to Normative Ethics and Meta-ethics. New York: Macmillan. pp. 219–220. ISBN 0023405805 Hooker, Brad (ed.), Truth in ethics, Oxford 1996 "Moral Cognitivism vs. Non-Cognitivism", Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/moral-cognitivism/ [retrieved on 24th Jan, 2009] Singer, Peter. Practical Ethics, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. [ISBN 0-521-43971-X] Read More