A concise, accessible, and engaging introduction to modern utilitarianism.
Introduction to Utilitarianism
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69 episodes
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Podcast Overview
A concise, accessible, and engaging introduction to modern utilitarianism.
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
7/10/2023
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Recent Episodes
March 28, 2026
Theories of Well-Being
<p> “To what shall the character of utility be ascribed, if not to that which is a source of pleasure?”</p><p> – Jeremy Bentham</p><p> 1 </p>1<p> Table of Contents</p><ol> <li> Introduction</li><li> Hedonism<ol> <li> The “Evil Pleasures” Objection</li><li> The Experience Machine Objection</li></ol></li><li> Desire Theories<ol> <li> Bizarre Desires</li><li> Changing Preferences</li></ol></li><li> Objective List Theories<ol> <li> Is Objective Value “Spooky”?</li><li> Alienation</li></ol></li><li> Practical Implications of Theories of Well-Being</li><li> Conclusion</li><li> Resources and Further Reading<ol> <li> Introduction</li><li> Welfarism</li><li> Hedonism</li><li> Desire Theories</li><li> Objective List Theories</li></ol></li></ol><p><strong> Introduction</strong></p><p> A core element of utilitarianism is welfarism—the view that only the welfare (also called well-being) of individuals determines how good a particular state of the world is. While consequentialists claim that what is right is to promote the amount of good in the world, welfarists specifically equate the good to be promoted with well-being.</p><p> Philosophers use the term “well-being” to refer to what's good for a person, as opposed to what's good per se, or “from the point of view of the Universe” to use Sidgwick's poetic phrase. Utilitarianism holds that well-being is always good from the point of view of the universe, and not just good for the individual. But other views may coherently deny this. For example, one might think that [...]</p> <p>---</p><p><strong>Outline:</strong></p><p>(00:18) Introduction</p><p>(02:29) Hedonism</p><p>(05:32) The Evil Pleasures Objection</p><p>(08:45) The Experience Machine Objection</p><p>(12:34) Desire Theories</p><p>(15:29) Bizarre Desires</p><p>(16:19) Changing Preferences</p><p>(18:10) Objective List Theories</p><p>(20:17) Is Objective Value Spooky?</p><p>(23:07) Alienation</p><p>(24:33) Practical Implications of Theories of Well-Being</p><p>(26:08) Conclusion</p><p>(27:37) Introduction</p><p>(28:42) Welfarism</p><p>(29:10) Hedonism</p><p>(30:25) Desire Theories</p><p>(31:35) Objective List Theories</p> <p><i>The original text contained 40 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.</i> </p><p>---</p> <p><b>First published:</b><br/> January 29th, 2023 </p> <p><b>Source:</b><br/> <a href="https://www.utilitarianism.net/theories-of-well-being?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.utilitarianism.net/theories-of-well-being</a> </p> <p>---</p> <p>Narrated by <a href="https://type3.audio/?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Narrated+by+TYPE+III+AUDIO&utm_term=utilitarianism_net&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">TYPE III AUDIO</a>.</p> <p>---</p><div style="max-width: 100%";><p><strong>Images from the article:</strong></p><a href="https://www.utilitarianism.net/img/theories-of-well-being.png" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.utilitarianism.net/img/theories-of-well-being.png" alt="Diagram showing relationships between hedonism, desire theories, and objective list theories." style="max-width: 100%;" /></a><p>Apple Podcasts and Spotify do not show images in the episode description. Try <a href="https://pocketcasts.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Pocket Casts</a>, or another podcast app.</p></div>
July 11, 2023
1. Introduction to Utilitarianism
This chapter introduces utilitarianism, and its major costs and benefits as a moral theory. <p><i>The original text contained 12 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.</i> </p><p>---</p> <p><b>First published:</b><br/> January 29th, 2023 </p> <p><b>Source:</b><br/> <a href="https://utilitarianism.net/introduction-to-utilitarianism?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://utilitarianism.net/introduction-to-utilitarianism</a> </p> <p>---</p> <p>Narrated by <a href="https://type3.audio/?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Narrated+by+TYPE+III+AUDIO&utm_term=utilitarianism_net&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">TYPE III AUDIO</a>.</p>
July 11, 2023
2. Elements and Types of Utilitarianism
After defining utilitarianism, this chapter offers a detailed analysis of its four key elements (consequentialism, welfarism, impartiality, and aggregationism). It explains the difference between maximizing, satisficing, and scalar utilitarianism, and other important distinctions between utilitarian theories. <p><i>The original text contained 30 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.</i> </p><p>---</p> <p><b>First published:</b><br/> January 29th, 2023 </p> <p><b>Source:</b><br/> <a href="https://utilitarianism.net/types-of-utilitarianism?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://utilitarianism.net/types-of-utilitarianism</a> </p> <p>---</p> <p>Narrated by <a href="https://type3.audio/?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Narrated+by+TYPE+III+AUDIO&utm_term=utilitarianism_net&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">TYPE III AUDIO</a>.</p>
69 total episodes available
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