Difference Between Consequentialism And Deontology

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Exploring Ethical Ideologies: Deontology and Consequentialism

Contemporary society adheres to the ethical ideologies that were dictated by philosophers such as Immanuel Kant, W.D. Ross, and John Stuart Mill. The conundrum is deciding which ethical system is more consistent with our values: Deontology or Consequentialism. Both ideologies intend to promote betterment. It is the means used to achieve such goals that compels me to be a deontologist. While Consequentialism presents a pragmatic, amoral process where the end justifies the means, I prefer the ethical ideology deontology with a universal stance within the realm of morality, because its principles provides moral guidance, encourages the categorical imperative, and provide prima facie duties.
First, Deontology is the prevailing universal ethical ideology because its principles provide moral guidance. Deontology finds morality to be a virtue. Its principles have …show more content…

Intuitively there is a presumption that we, as members of society and world citizens, should make the world a better place. For this reason one may find that moral constraints must be placed on consequences. Consequentialism fails to examine the effects that action has on people and only sees the result. Human rights abuses in war are a result of wars end goals to bring about peace and make improvements.
Consequentialism has no moral guidelines so there is never a cutoff. It only examines consequences of actions. Consequentialism is an “any means necessary” ethical mindset that expects that better circumstances will result from actions. Consequentialism defies morality because only consequences justify action. As taken from the “Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy” website from a page titled “Deontological Ethics” as paraphrased, “Consequences can justify any act no matter how harmful it is to some as long as it is beneficial to others.” (Alexander and

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