Robin Hood

Robin Hood, another timeless character, has been portrayed in a number of films, books, comics and plays. There may be different versions of this subject, but the main story remains the same, wherein they refer to him as a medieval outlaw who was famous for "robbing the rich to feed the poor."

Robin Hood's character may seem Machiavellian at a more shallow level, because the question "Does the end justify the means?" arises. But for me, I find him resembling those of John Stuart Mill's heroes who seeks justice at the expense of others, to reach the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. Even to this day, it is still debated on whether or not Robin Hood should be regarded as a criminal, having to steal to feed the poor. His actions may have been wrong (as we are taught that it is bad to steal), but he measured the righteousness of his doings by the result of his actions.

Some may say that Robin is similar to a modern-day thief having been caught, would state that he only pick-pocketed to feed his family. I think it's entirely different, because first, Robin did not include himself in his benefactors. In fact, he was at great risk, but that didn't stop him from trying to provide for those who could not, especially because of the high taxes being collected which he thought was unjust. Let's say the present-day thief does not include himself as the benefactors of his pick-pocketed money, but still it's different, because he's not aiming for the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people. There may be hope for his family, as opposes to Robin's benefactors, the masses in his time, who has nothing much, yet taxes are still being collected from them. That was injustice.

Lord of the Rings Trilogy

“Unquestionably it is possible to do without happiness; it is done involuntarily by the nineteen-twentieths of mankind, even in those parts of our present world which are least deep in barbarism; and it often has to be done voluntarily by the hero or martyr, for the sake of something which he prizes more than his individual happiness.”

This passage from "On Utilitarianism" reminded me so much of those heroes who sought the greatest suffering for the happiness of many others. An example could be that of Frodo Baggins from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, in which he endured venturing for the sake of the destruction of an object (ring) that threatens the well-being of the entire middle-earth. He does all this voluntarily, knowing that he could have stayed in the Shire with his fellow hobbits. He put others before his own happiness, and the honor he actually possessed by doing so gave him a higher form of happiness, knowing that he contributed to the increase of the amount of happiness in Middle Earth.