Let us now turn to the world of morals. This tendency of all conceptions of them, which are not based on religion, to be mean and low is very striking. If such are the foundations of the moral life, it ceases to be the great thing we have always believed it to be. We cannot help but have less respect for ourselves as moral beings.
There is the utilitarian view of morals. Here is a statement of Bentham's view: '"'Ethically Bent-ham regarded the action of the individual as determined solely by motives of self-interest or pleasure, and he relied on the pressure of public opinion to bring the actions of individuals into general conformity with the public good," which he called the "greatest happiness of the greatest number."' There is no doubt that this phrase has been popular. It has a democratic sound about it. But what a beggarly idea of right
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.