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felicific calculus

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felicific calculus

In ethics, a technique for establishing the rightness and wrongness of an action. Using the calculus, one can attempt to work out the likely consequences of an action in terms of the pain or pleasure of those affected by the action. The calculus is attributed to English utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham.



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Leaving aside the question of whether it is in principle knowable how many side effects suffered are equal in the felicific calculus to one stroke avoided, it is clear that the doctor is departing from his commitment to individuals when he treats a patient with hypertension: for in any individual case, he has a much greater chance of doing harm (even if of a relatively trivial kind) than of doing good (even if of a significant and life-saving kind).
 
 
 
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