Utilitarian

Pre-modern formulations

Utilitarian ideas can also be found in the work of medieval philosophers. In medieval India, the 8th-century philosopher Śāntideva wrote that humanity ought "to stop all the present and future pain and suffering of all sentient beings, and to bring about all present and future pleasure and happiness." In medieval Europe, happiness was explored in depth by Thomas Aquinas in his Summa Theologica. During the Renaissance, one author whose work incorporated consequentialist ideas was the political philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli.