Justice with Michael Sandel — Season 1, Episode 2: Putting a Price Tag on Life/How to Measure Pleasure
Talk, Documentary • 30 min • 1 season, 12 episodes • ★ 9.0/10
Episode synopsis
Today, companies and governments often use Jeremy Benthams utilitarian logic under the name of cost-benefit analysis. Sandel presents some contemporary cases in which cost-benefit analysis was used to put a dollar value on human lie. The cases give rise to several objections to the utilitarian logic of seeking the greatest good for the greatest number. Should we always give more weight to the happiness of a majority, even if the majority is cruel or ignoble? Is it possible to sum up and compare all values using a common measure like money?
About Justice with Michael Sandel
Justice is the first Harvard course to be made freely available online and on public television. In this 12-part series, college professor Michael Sandel challenges us with hard moral dilemmas and invites us to ponder the right thing to do-in politics and in our everyday lives.
More episodes from Season 1
- E1The Moral Side of Murder/The Case for Cannibalism
- E3Free to Choose/Who Owns Me?
- E4The Land is My Land/Consenting Adults
- E5Hired Guns?/For Sale: Motherhood
- E6Mind Your Motive/The Supreme Principle of Morality
- E7A Lesson In Lying/A Deal Is A Deal
- E8What's A Fair Start?/What Do We Deserve?
- E9Arguing Affirmative Action/What's The Purpose?
- E10The Good Citizen/ Freedom Vs. Fit
- E11The Claims Of Community/Where Our Loyaty Lies
- E12Debating Same-Sex Marriage/The Good Life