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A real life situation where I used utilitarianism essay
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A real life situation where I used utilitarianism essay
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Ethical Utilitarianism The theory that I have chosen is the theory of ethical utilitarianism. Many people use this theory every day without even knowing we are using it, it’s is so natural that we don’t even think about it or wonder how we became to using it. Ethical utilitarianism is one of the many answers to the question of why an action or something is morally correct or incorrect. This is has been an ongoing question that many people have made theories towards trying to answer it and the theory of utilitarianism is the one that I think answers it the most accurately. The ethical utilitarianism theory is when the moral rightness of an action or activity can be determined by looking at its consequences. The consequences are determined right or wrong depending on whether the outcome is favorable than more unfavorable by those who are affected by the action or activity. So this means as long as the actions or activity that are performed bring out the most happiness and pleasure overall, the action is then considered morally and ethically right, but if the action brings sadness and displeasure then the action or activity is wrong. There is another way ethical utilitarianism is looked at, which is when the action or activity is judged by the people involved are …show more content…
based on rules that promote the greatest happiness and pleasure. History behind Utilitarianism The theoretical basis of utilitarianism was founded by a philosopher by the name of Jeremy Bentham but later on fully developed by a British philosopher named John Stuart Mill in the 19th century. Jeremy Bentham was credited for the theory of utilitarianism when he released his written work titled “Introduction to the Principles of Moral and Legislation.” This work was written in 1780 but not distributed to the public until 1789. Even though Jeremy Bentham was credited for creating the utilitarianism theory, Bentham said he borrowed the concept that become the theory of utilitarianism from a document written by a person named Joseph Priestley. Benefits and Disadvantages to Utilitarianism Here are a few of the benefits and strengths in ethical utilitarianism.
Utilitarianism provides a foundation for creating and testing different ideas and it offers an objective way of solving conflicts of self-interest that you would get by using the egoism theory. By following the utilitarianism theory you recognize the groups that are involved and/or society in part of the decision making process to determine if something is ethically correct or not. Utilitarianism does not allow a person to put his/her interests or actions first, someone who follows the theory of utilitarianism thinks in the best interest of the minority of the group involved. The last one is it can easily resolve conflicts of
interests. Now here are a couple of disadvantages and weaknesses in using the ethical utilitarianism theory. The utilitarianism can conflict with justice, and if someone were to use the theory of ethical utilitarianism they would not be able to assign the value of the pleasures and pain of the action or activity. Utilitarianism could be used as an excuse for doing something such as killing someone because it will produce the greatest happiness for the community. Those are the benefits and disadvantages to ethical utilitarianism theory that I can come up with. Ethical Dilemma – Using Utilitarianism A couple of summers ago I was working at a great summer job, perfect pay, and easy work, it was all thanks to my dad. But a month into the summer when my co-workers and I got our first pay cheques, we compared and even though we all work around the same amount of time my pay cheque was still significantly larger. Many of these co-workers were not even students working for the summer for some spending cash, they were people trying to support their families and some of them were even working there longer than me. Some of them realised that it was bugging me and told me that it was nothing to get worked up about. But I could tell that they were not satisfied about the amount they were making compared to me, after all I just started working at my dad’s company for the summer and I’m doing the same work as the rest of them. Should I confront my dad about it even though they told me not to, what should I do? Sense I’m following the utilitarianism theory I would care about the largest group’s happiness, but they told me they did not want me to get worked up about it. I know for a fact that they were not satisfied about the amount they were earning compared to me, therefore they would not have the greatest happiness and pleasure. So in order for everyone to have the greatest happiness and pleasure I would need to confront my dad and tell him it’s not right for me to be getting a greater pay cheque at the end of the month then everyone else just because you’re my dad. I would then ask him to give everyone an equal pay no matter who they are by either raising everyone’s pay to be the same as mine or lower my pay so it is fair to everyone else who is working with me. By doing this I ensure that the majority of the group involved which are the other workers, who are getting paid less than me for the same work and time get paid the same as me. By doing this it means even if I lose a bit of money on a pay cheque the group gets an equal pay and they get the greatest happiness and pleasure out of this ethical dilemma. Reflection The solution to this problem surprised me a lot because I would most likely never offer taking money away from my cheque to make the payments going out to workers equal even if it would make the other workers gain the greater amount of happiness, I would how ever ask if it’s possible to have the pay per hour increase to what mine is sense where doing the same work. Everyone in this dilemma would diffidently agree and see that my decision to confront my dad about the amount he’s paying me compared to everyone else. This decision does not really consistent with my personal values like I stated above because I would not sacrifice my wellbeing for someone else’s in this case it would be sacrifices money that its given to me for working to make everyone else gain happiness. The only thing id most likely do is ask my dad to raise their hourly cheque. I wouldn’t change anything about the philosophical model because I believe that people should think and make decisions like the utilitarianism theory says to do. I think this because if everyone thought about the interests of the people involved in their lives people could use it to make decisions that will be give themselves and the people around them happiness and pleasure, which is the whole point of the utilitarianism theory in my point of view at least.
Utilitarianism concerns itself with promoting the best outcomes for the greatest numbers in order to be ethically acceptable, utilitarianism is a consequentialist approach which aims at results of actions regardless of how they are carried out. Utilitarian monsters, a term coined by R. Nozick, are those who “get enormously greater gains in utility from any sacrifice of others than these others lose. For, unacceptably, the theory seems to require that we all be sacrificed in the monster’s maw, in order to increase total utility”.(The Utility Monster, 2011)
Utilitarianism is an ethical study often associated with “politics of interest” because the ideas of utilitarianism are set on maximizing utility and efficiency. This idea focuses on individualism and aggregating what is best for society as a whole, specifically the economic aspect of society. Deontology is an ethical study that is almost the complete opposite of utilitarian beliefs. Deontology is an ethical study often associated with “politics of conscious” because it approaches issues with the idea of right vs. wrong on mind. This ethical viewpoint is rooted in fulfilling God’s laws and focuses on equal rights. An ethical dilemma case that revolves around the utilitarianism view is The Yellowstone National Park case. The controversy in
Utilitarianism says that the right action is the one that brings about the most overall happiness. No other moral rule has universal validity. According to Rachels, Utilitarianism is known as “we should always do whatever will produce the greatest possible balance of happiness over unhappiness for everyone who will be affected by our action” (Rachels). Utilitarianism has three main principles. Consequentialism says that the actions are to be judged right or wrong solely by virtue of their consequences. Hedonism states that in assessing consequences, the only thing that matters are the amount of happiness/unhappiness that is caused. The Equality Principle states that each person’s happiness counts the same. The two most important objections to utilitarianism are Consequentialism and the Equality Principle. The replies to Consequentialism and the Equality Principle, shows that Utilitarianism is not a plausible moral theory, therefore, Utilitarianism should be rejected.
“Utilitarianism is the creed which accepts as the foundations of morals utility of the greatest happiness principle holds that actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness.” (Mil, 90). Utilitarianism ethics is based on the greatest good for the greatest number meaning that the moral agent does what he/she thinks will be
Imagine a child living in a hot, government owned apartment in Chicago. He has no father. With his single, jobless mother he struggles to the words of the founding fathers: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inherent and inalienable Rights; that among these, are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness...” (The Declaration of Independence). This is one of the most famous phrases in the US Declaration of Independence and has become the underpinning of the dreams of millions of people around the world. Although the words are different, these sentiments are reflected in the political and economical policies of many democracies. While the notion of ‘happiness for all’ seems like the obvious solution to many of our persistent problems, we inevitably encounter conflicts between our actions and our morals. “The state is based on……the contradiction between public and private life, between universal and particular interests. For this reason, the state must confine itself to formal, negative activities.”(Marx, 1992). This essay focuses on the issues of a prominent theory, Utilitarianism as it blends and encompasses both areas of Economics and Ethics which have become the basis of our governmental bodies.
Utilitarianism is a good example of an ethical theory that could be applied to my professional and personal life. Utilitarianism is the theory that a person should maximize the happiness and minimize the unhappiness for as many people as possible. This theory believes
Does one’s happiness transcend to others and create happiness for society? The concept of Utilitarianism is that of which the average individual must endeavor to obtain maximum happiness by doing whatever means necessary to better the world as a whole. This goal is not only for people of the present but also the future. This goal can come with a lot of skepticism especially from that of common sense morality. These things conflict with one another because although Utilitarianism tries to bring the best out of everybody with happiness; it lacks the self interest for others when making decisions.
Utilitarian Ethics- is a concept of consequentialist ethics. Utilitarian ethics is based on the idea that the moral worth of an action is solely determined by the contribution to overall happiness or pleasures for society as a whole. One has the option to either asses the consequences of each act or asses the consequences that will persist as long as they produce the greatest net good for all.
Utilitarianism can be defined as: the right action is the one that produces the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people. Utilitarians seem to believe that humans only have two desires, or motivations: happiness and pain. They want as much happiness as possible and the least amount of pain as any other action. Utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory, meaning that whether it is right, depends solely on its consequences.
Utilitarianism is a moral theory that approaches moral questions of right and wrong by considering the actual consequences of a variety of possible actions. These consequences are generally those that either positively or negatively affect other living beings. If there are both good and bad actual consequences of a particular action, the moral individual must weigh the good against the bad and go with the action that will produce the most good for the most amount of people. If the individual finds that there are only bad consequences, then she must go with the behavior that causes the least amount of bad consequences to the least amount of people. There are many different methods for calculating the utility of each moral decision and coming up with the best
Utilitarianism is a philosophical theory in which the happiness of the greatest number of people in a community is considered to be the greatest good. According to me, I find utilitarianism the most compelling ethical theory among the three. Not only do I find utilitarianism more compelling but also some government systems such as the United States and many more prefer using this theory in their governing.
Utilitarianism is a theory aimed at defining one simple basis that can be applied when making any ethical decision. It is based on a human’s natural instinct to seek pleasure and avoid pain.
1a. Utilitarianism is one of the most influential moral theories. Like other forms of consequentialism, its main idea is that the decision of whether actions are morally right or wrong depends on their effects. More specifically, the only effects of actions that should be considered are the good and bad results that they produce. Utilitarianism believes that the purpose of morality is to make life better by increasing the amount of good things in the world. The motto for Utilitarians is: “The greatest good for the greatest number.” Based on this theory, any action that provides more people with happiness or pleasure is morally right. Moral codes are not consistent with this theory, nor any systems that consist of rules such as customs, traditions, or orders. Instead, utilitarianists think that what makes a morality be true or justifiable is its positive contribution to human beings. Act Utilitarianism focuses on the effects of individual actions rather than the effects of rules, such as the effects of David’s possible chemical attack on the water supply.
Utilitarianism can be described as an ethical theory that states if the consequences of an action
Decision-making is one of the hardest tasks individuals have to endure. Deciphering between whether or not the decision you make will benefit you, hurt someone else, what are the pros, what are the cons, and if the decision you make is even moral. When decision-making the study of ethics plays a major role as to which decision you ultimately decide on. Ethics evaluates the morality of actions based on principles set by theories, individuals or in some instances cultures. Morality is an enormous part of decision-making, which comes into play every single day in human life. Ethicists create theories based on the moral duties in our lives in regards to certain situations. In particular, utilitarianism is a well-known theory in which essentially, promotes the idea of providing the most satisfaction for the majority whenever possible. Utilitarianism constitutes the overall happiness, the consequences and the principle of utility in order to correctly determine whether or not an action is right.