Where Utilitarianism and Fantasy Meet
Akhil Rodrigues

            In May of this year Christian Brothers University, along with numerous other colleges across the nation, will send out a number of graduates with great pomp and circumstance. At these graduation ceremonies we will see the future of the country and indeed the world. Finally rewarded with a degree, after years of solving problems, writing papers, performing research in various fields, and working in laboratories, these well-read individuals will at last be ready to take on the challenges of the real world. They will be able to use their knowledge for the betterment of humanity and of course for their own advantage. I will not be among these graduates, but I hope to follow their path in 2002. Even though I am pursuing the very technical degree of Electrical and Computer Engineering, over the past three years I have had many opportunities to reflect on the kind of person I wish to become in the near future. My hopes, dreams and aspirations change continually under the influence of the people I meet, and my experiences with them. While justice is not a major theme in the engineering discipline, the knowledge that we live in a just society is extremely important (at least to me) in the pursuit of true happiness. Sadly, no individual today can claim to live in a just society.
            In her book Poetic Justice, Martha Nussbaum emphasizes the importance of a more humanistic education, in distinct contrast with the utilitarian, unfeeling system of the Gradgrind school of thought, portrayed in Charles Dickens' classic novel Hard Times. The two trends discussed by Dickens and Nussbaum seem to be at opposite ends of the cognitive spectrum, but reading these works lead me to believe that there might be a compromise between the two, and it is this that could serve as the foundation of a more just society. A type of utilitarianism that weaves in the social fabric of the people, taking into account the uniqueness of each individual's way of life, might serve to establish a society where justice is for all people, and not just the wealthy elite.
            With a firm background in science and technology, when I begin my career as an engineer, it might prove very tempting to slip into the world of fact and reason, not just applying these models and formulae on paper, but to people as well. It seems the Gradgrind way of life could fit easily into my own. Likewise, I could also get so carried away by my accomplishments (if ever I have any) that I convince myself, very much like the self-righteous character Bounderby, that I alone am God's gift to humanity, and that everyone else must respect me for what I have done. The sum total of a person's life is a result of their interactions with various people and influences. People like Bounderby choose to ignore this, attributing their success to themselves and no one else. This sort of person has obvious flaws. No man is an island, but if you try isolating yourself from the rest of the world, under the impression that there is nothing the world can offer you, self-destruction shall likely result. Characterized by what Nussbaum calls commensurability, or the assignment of a numerical value to the joys of life, and making no distinction between different experiences, utilitarianism seems to strip human beings of their emotions, viewing them as cold, unfeeling, purely self-interested creatures. Aggregation is yet another threat to our human dignity by disregarding the natural boundaries between individuals by seeing everyone in society as merely one big mass, supposedly equal. Unfortunately, society does not treat everyone equally; for instance, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Justice serves only the wealthy, as can be seen when Stephen Blackpool visits Bounderby for advice: desperate to end his marriage to a worthless drunk, Stephen is looking for a way out of his predicament within the law. Bounderby informs Stephen that in order to be free of his commitment to his wife, he would have to pay a heavy price, and no "hand" in England could even dream of raising such a large sum of money. By carefully showing us the dangers associated with the kind of society established in nineteenth century industrial England (the predecessor to our digital age), Dickens questions the humanity of the rich. If the wealthy do not make any effort to improve the life of the "hands" that they exploit continuously, this uncaring attitude will only serve to lessen the quality of their own lives, stripping them of any moral fiber. Bounderby was quick to judge the factory workers, but he knew nothing about their lives. This mode of thinking, coupled with his large ego and sense of self-worth, led him to deny his very own mother! Needless to say, his character was in dire need of moral sensitizing.
            Having realized the pitfalls of a life such as that of Thomas Gradgrind or Josiah Bounderby, I feel that I must have some way of ensuring that I do not fall into a similar trap, despite the temptation to do so. I am fortunate to at least have the opportunity to rise above the economic level of a factory worker, and carve out a life that will ensure some measure of financial stability. However, as I hopefully climb the corporate ladder, I must realize the collective responsibility that any society or culture must hold if the thread of justice is to be spun into a way of life. By collective responsibility, I mean there must be a general realization and acceptance of the fact that every human being in some way contributes to his or her immediate surroundings. The street cleaners and taxi drivers are just as important as the doctors, lawyers and engineers. While the distribution of wealth may remain unequal, one cannot adopt an attitude of self-importance and isolation if one is rich, or feelings of uselessness and self-pity if one is on the lower end of the tax brackets.
            As we go about our daily lives, dealing with the pressures of work and family, it is extremely difficult to take time out to learn about the lives of people unlike ourselves. However, gaining an insight into ways of life different from our own might help us perceive the people around us for who they really are. In the administration of justice, the ability to realize that each situation to be evaluated has unique qualities is imperative if all members of our society are to be treated equally and justly. Nussbaum argues that literature can help refine our moral reasoning by giving us glimpses into the lives of other people. Thus, we might tend to become more sympathetic and tolerant to the unique challenges each individual faces. Nussbaum describes a literary judge saying that such a person "holds that such social and historical facts are relevant" and "should develop as rich and comprehensive an understanding as possible of the situation of the groups involved in a case. She should not be swayed by any personal connection or any partisan goal" (Nussbaum, 89). She seems to suggest that the ability to place oneself in the shoes of another and fully understand his or her outlook is a worthy task, and literature helps ease this challenge by raising our moral consciousness. I have suggested before that a middle path that combines utilitarianism with a certain amount of moral objectivity might be a more suitable approach to the rendering of justice. Since I tend towards utilitarianism with my engineering background, I realize it will be up to me to raise my moral consciousness. A resource that might help me accomplish this could be novels, as their imaginary world would drive home the fact that the world can be different from what I experience it to be. They make the reader a part of the plot unlike any other media, and in doing so, force us to think about how people around us actually live, even though we may be isolated from them. While not doubting the strength of Nussbaum's argument, I would like to emphasize that it is also necessary to read novels with a certain amount of objectivity. The reader should be careful not to slip completely into the world of fancy, as this might lead to unreal expectations of the world.
            Engineers make judgments; we weigh the facts in a particular case and make a decision. The economic feasibility of projects is usually the key element in determining a course of action. As a very real example, if an engineer were asked to determine if a certain factory that employs three hundred people should be kept running or not, he or she would consider various facts: have the production levels have been maximized; if not, can they be raised from current levels? Is the factory cost effective? If questions such as these are answered in the negative, the engineer might decide to close down the factory. How this move could affect the workers would only be considered if taking away their livelihood could lead to lawsuits. A person making such a decision in the confines of a comfortable office without ever looking into the lives of the factory workers would find it easy to cause three hundred people to lose their jobs. However with an elevated moral consciousness, an engineer might consider making an effort to improve the quality of life of the workers, which in turn would raise productivity automatically. Utilitarian economics must certainly be applied, but not by causing human suffering.
            Nussbaum's argument that novels are a means of raising the moral consciousness of the people who sit in judgement of others is a strong one, and I support her ideas. An insight into the great variety of life that surrounds us, coupled with the realization that every individual in a society has a unique contribution and outlook on life might help us make more informed decisions. The ability to apply science and reason is certainly important for me as an engineer, but I feel I must also incorporate a more holistic approach as I make decisions. Each one of us must determine our roles in the creation of a more just society. To err is human and while we might not always succeed, our attempts might just lead to a situation where the "hands" cease to be "hands" and become human.

Works Cited

Dickens, Charles. Hard Times. Ed. David Craig. London: Penguin, 1985.

Nussbaum, Martha. Poetic Justice: The Literary Imagination and Public Life. Boston: Beacon, 1995.