Utilitarianism, Hedonism, and Desert

A collection of essays by Fred Feldman on utilitarian moral philosophy.

Feldman has made a substantial contribution to utilitarian moral philosophy. This collection of eleven essays reveals the striking originality and unity of his views, by evaluating behaviour and justice affecting utilitarianism. The collection is suited for courses on contemporary utilitarian theory.Fred Feldman is an important philosopher, who has made a substantial contribution to utilitarian moral philosophy. This collection of ten previously published essays plus a new introductory essay reveal the striking originality and unity of his views. Feldman's version of utilitarianism differs from traditional forms in that it evaluates behaviour by appeal to the values of accessible worlds. These worlds are in turn evaluated in terms of the amounts of pleasure they contain, but the conception of pleasure involved is a novel one and the formulation of hedonism improved. In Feldman's view pleasure is not a feeling but a propositional attitude. He also deals with problems of justice that affect standard forms of utilitarianism. The collection is ideally suited for courses on contemporary utilitarian theory.