Describe the main features of Utilitarianism.

Utilitarianism is an teleological consequentialist ethical theory, based on the maximisation of pleasure and minimisation of pain. It is teleological in the sense that the theory focuses on the goal of an ethical action and consequentialist in the sense that it bases the morality of an action on its outcomes. For the utilitarian, an action is right or wrong based on the consequences it brings about. Moreover, the main crux of utilitarianism is the idea of maximising utility - creating the greatest good for the greatest number of people. The two most famous philosophers associated with this theory are Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. Furthermore, there are different branches of utilitarianism; act utilitarianism, rule utilitarianism and preference utilitarianism.