Utilitarianism and Empire
-
Sara Ahmed critiques British utilitarianism by examining how it was employed to justify imperialism, particularly British Empire. Utilitarianism, which emphasises the principle of “the greatest happiness for the greatest number,” became a tool to defend colonial expansion. Central figures like James Mill and John Stuart Mill argued that the British Empire’s rule brought happiness and civilisation to colonised societies, suggesting that the benefits to the colonised outweighed the costs to both them and the colonisers. This logic framed imperial domination as a morally upright mission, one in which the British were tasked with civilising so-called primitive societies that were assumed to be inherently unhappy.
Ahmed points out that this “happiness mission” constructed the colonised as childlike, primitive, and incapable of self-governance, thus positioning colonial intervention as necessary for their progress. The colonised were seen as lacking the qualities needed for happiness, which was defined by British norms of civility, knowledge, and reason. The utilitarian defense of empire masked the violence of colonialism by presenting it as a philanthropic gift—one that increased human happiness by imposing European law, education, and manners onto the colonised. In this way, happiness became a justification for subjugation, with the British Empire seen as the bearer of moral and civilisational superiority.
Ahmed also critiques the notion that the happiness of the colonisers and the colonised could be weighed and compared through utilitarian principles. She argues that utilitarianism allowed for the exploitation of colonised societies under the guise of promoting collective happiness, but in reality, it served British economic and political interests. The suffering caused by empire was minimised or justified as a necessary step toward the greater good. Ultimately, Ahmed reveals how utilitarian philosophy, though ostensibly focused on maximising happiness, was instrumentalised to legitimise imperialism, perpetuating racial hierarchies and justifying the domination of non-European peoples.