In applying the greatest happiness principle to actions and situations, it considers the implications for utility if the action were taken to establish a rule. Rule utilitarianism, in contrast, takes a broader view of the ethical universe. This is the framework that is easiest to extract from Mill's work on a first reading. One could say that the ethical universe in which they operate is contained to those engaged in an action as well as those impacted by it. Two such theories are called 'act utilitarianism' and 'rule utilitarianism.'Ī person operating under act utilitarianism applies the greatest happiness principle in considering the immediate consequences of actions. As time has passed, however, the term has evolved to the point where 'utilitarianism' has become an umbrella term for multiple theories that engage the Greatest Happiness principle in different ways. Utilitarianism has remained influential and vibrant within ethical canon since Mill's treatise was first published in 1861.
