Mill's Utilitarianism › Reading Mill Today

*Utilitarianism* rewards multiple readings. On first encounter, it seems to offer a devastatingly simple answer to ethics: maximize happiness. On closer inspection, every term conceals complexities that occupied Mill his entire life. What counts as happiness? Whose happiness counts? How do we compare different kinds of pleasure? How do we handle uncertainty about consequences? When do rules override calculation? These questions remain open. But engaging them seriously, taking utilitarianism as a genuine contender for the truth about ethics rather than a straw man to knock down, reveals something important. Most of us are already consequentialists in practice. We evaluate policies by their outcomes. We judge actions by whether they help or harm. We weigh costs against benefits constantly, often without realizing it. Mill's genius was to articulate the logic we already follow, refine it, defend it against objections, and show where it leads. His conclusions remain controversial. But his questions remain unavoidable.