68.0k views
1 vote
Bentham argued that any citizen who encountered a beggar should be empowered to apprehend him and take him to the nearest workhouse.

a.true
b.false

1 Answer

6 votes

Final answer:

The claim that Jeremy Bentham advocated for citizens to apprehend beggars and take them to workhouses is false. Bentham's utilitarian philosophy does not support this specific action, and historical context provided does not correlate with the claim.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement that Jeremy Bentham argued that any citizen who encountered a beggar should be empowered to apprehend him and take him to the nearest workhouse is false. Bentham's philosophical approach was utilitarianism, which is focused on maximising happiness for the greatest number of people.

He did believe in reforming institutions to make them more efficient and humane, but the specific assertion about empowering a citizen to apprehend beggars and take them to workhouses does not align with his documented views. Additionally, the information provided in the historical context does not corroborate this claim, rather highlighting different nineteenth-century perspectives on dealing with poverty, from self-improvement to penal approaches.

User Ness Tyagi
by
8.0k points