'Human nature is so constituted as to desire nothing which is not either part of happiness or a means to it' - Is this true? Why is the answer to this question so important to Mill?

... 'Human nature is so constituted as to desire nothing which is not either part of happiness or a means to it' - Is this true? Why is the answer to this question so important to Mill? In Chapter Four of Utilitarianism, Mill attempts to prove his moral theory: 'actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness'1. According to Crisp, his proof comprises three stages: happiness is desirable; the general happiness is desirable and nothing other than happiness is desirable. Mill sides with the inductive, empirical school, believing the intuitionists too unscientific, complementing his naturalism i.e. the natural sciences, including psychology, can explain everything. This essay shall examine each of the three stages and assess the link between human nature and desire. Finally, the importance to Mill that nothing apart from happiness is desired shall be considered. The first stage

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