Research on British Utilitarian Ethical Thought

Author: Ni Jinghui
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-04-01
Features: From the formal publication of this academic paper to the present, nearly a decade has passed. Over these ten years, the author began with Kant's rationalist ethical thought, then conducted comparative research on rationalist and empiricist ethics, and ultimately turned to the representative doctrine of empiricist ethics—British ethics—thus establishing their academic starting point. The process of academic research is also a process of shaping the author's personal beliefs and personality. As the utilitarian ethicist J. Mill emphasized, one must listen to various opposing viewpoints with moral justice before they can truly believe in the truth of a certain viewpoint; as Mill firmly believed, the enjoyment derived from knowledge surpasses everything else: these gradually became my firm inner convictions. Meanwhile, the deontologist Kant's admiration for the "starry sky above my head and the moral law in my heart," and the utilitarian ethicists' strong focus on social development and progress, have always been part of what attracts us to engage in ethical research, and have become part of the author's thoughts, life, and even their very existence. Today, the doctoral dissertation "A Study on British Utilitarian Ethical Thought" is published, and the author is very willing to see it as a summary and commemoration of a decade of life in ethical research.