Write a 4-5 page paper on one of the following two topics.  The paper is due in class Thursday, November 6.  Please consult the Writing Guidelines for suggestions about how to prepare for and write your paper.

1. Mill on Higher Pleasures.  After explaining what the doctrine of utilitarianism stands for in Chapter ii of Utilitarianism, Mill goes on to consider the objection that it is a doctrine fit only for swine.  What is the objection?  What is Mill’s reply, and how does the doctrine of higher pleasures figure in that reply?  Explain the doctrine of higher pleasures and how it relates to the sort of quantitative hedonism that Bentham defended.  What does the higher pleasures doctrine imply about hedonism, and how plausible do you think that doctrine is?

2. Mill on Freedom of Expression.  In defending individual liberties in On Liberty, Mill appeals to freedom of expression, because he thinks that the importance of these liberties is fairly uncontroversial and that when the justification of these liberties is understood we will better appreciate the importance of other liberties.  What reasons does Mill offer for opposing censorship?  Are these equally good arguments for freedom of expression?  How, if at all, does Mill’s defense of freedom of expression appeal to perfectionist assumptions about human happiness?  How plausible do you find Mill’s defense of free speech?

3. Mill on Utility and Rights.  Some philosophers think that there is difficult for the utilitarian to recognize rights.  However, in Utilitarianism Chapter v Mill offers a utilitarian account of rights, and in On Liberty Mill wants to defend a right to fundamental liberties on utilitarian foundations.