Which of the following arc the features of the ideology of utilitarianism ? 1. Utilitarians believed that all value derives from land 2. The most celebrated spokesmen of utilitarianism were Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill 3. Utilitarians were advocates of the idea that India could be ruled through indigenous laws and customs 4. Utilitarians were advocates of the idea of the ‘greatest good for the greatest number of people’ Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Utilitarianism is a consequentialist ethical theory defined by the principle of the 'greatest good for the greatest number of people' [1]. Its most prominent spokesmen were the British philosophers Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill [3]. Statement 1 is incorrect because the belief that all value derives from land is associated with Physiocracy, not utilitarianism. Statement 3 is also incorrect; utilitarians were generally critical of indigenous Indian laws and customs, viewing them as irrational or superstitious. Instead, they advocated for radical reform through centralized, rational legislation and a modern legal code to maximize social utility [3]. In the Indian context, utilitarian ideas influenced British administrators to move away from the 'Orientalist' approach of respecting local traditions, favoring instead the imposition of Western rationalist and legal frameworks to improve society [2].

Sources

1. [1] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 19: Towards Modernity > 19.1 Emergence of Reform Movements > p. 298
2. [3] https://www.investopedia.com/terms/u/utilitarianism.asp
3. [2] Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 10: Beginning of Modern Nationalism in India > Western Thought and Education > p. 241