UtilitarianismEssay Preview: UtilitarianismReport this essayMany people in the world have strong feelings of right and wrong. Where do moral rules come from, and how do we know if we are really doing the “right” thing? In many societies, most moral beliefs come from a religious background, or a family tradition passed down throughout the generations. There are many philosophical beliefs about this issue; one of these is the Utilitarian view, which is the belief that moral rules should be choices made by a society to promote the happiness of its members. On the other side of this moral spectrum come the ideas of Kant, which basically consist of following a set of standard rules; in other words, certain actions are always wrong, while others are always right. An example of Kant’s absolute rules is that lying and murder are always wrong.
Utilitarianism gives a clear, theoretical basis for moral decision making. Before deciding upon a course of action, the utilitarian is asked to consider its effects on the entire population over an infinite period of time. One problem with this method of decision-making is that many people might not agree with the premise that maximization of happiness should be the basis for morality. An example of this is that there are two patients (X and Y) in a hospital who both need different organ transplants to survive, and there are presently no available organs, which would cause the two patients to die. The utilitarian view would be two kill a healthy man or woman with these well-working organs to save the two patients. That way, only one person would die instead of two. Obviously, there is a problem with this decision because a healthy person with a right to live would be killed for two other people, and this would not be accepted in our society.
Another problem with the utilitarian point of view comes from the story called “The Ones Who Walk Away From the Omelas”. This story is about a fairy-tale city where everyone is happy; however a little boy is locked in a basement where no one talks to him or pays attention to him, but they know he is there. The only way the city of Omelas will remain perfect is if this little boy remains locked away in misery. If he were to be let out and freed, the people would not be able to enjoy constant perfection. The utilitarian approach is to keep the boy in locked away because he is the reason the city remains perfect; the greatest good for the greatest number of people. However, we all know that this abusive action towards the little boy is morally wrong, which is the Kantian belief: no one should life a life of pain and isolation, and everyone should be respected.
However, there are situations in which the utilitarian method of moral decision-making would be accepted by the majority of the people in our society. One example of this is the presently-occurring debate over the death penalty. The utilitarians need to consider both sides of the issue: should we put criminals to death who kill other people, or should we keep them in maximum security prisons for the rest of their lives? The general population would most-likely feel better that one less murderer is loose on the streets, and so would the victim’s family. Also, they would know that the criminal is receiving a harsh form of penalty that would be the repercussion of their brutal actions. To solely send criminals to jail for the rest
The utilitarianist’s stance on the death penalty is a logical one, as it serves to reinforce the utilitarian view that such a penalty is unnecessary, and that this punishment would be sufficient to keep certain moral preferences in the minority. While this is not particularly helpful in deterring a group from behaving badly, it is an excellent way to address people’s concerns that this particular form of punishment will always be better than none at all.
In our society, there are three main reasons why our moral and philosophical preferences are strongly supported by this policy: (1) Most people would benefit the least. (2) As a result, it is always preferable for people to live by the dictates of what is good for them. (3) These preferences are the result of a fundamental system of self-reflection. A very large percent would be satisfied with the choice to live a life of pleasure rather than of pain – that is, that a more normal life would be better than living a less normal life.
Finally, a strong moral system does not come about simply by using a means that we find acceptable to our preferences. The best example is the way human beings use choice.
An important problem is the role of choice in deciding which actions to take. In utilitarian ethics, we tend to place greater value on the actions (an assumption that has been popularized by both utilitarianism/neuroticism/intellectualism). It is not something that is imposed randomly on a group randomly. Rather, the way human beings use these values determines how they apply to the way we live.
A good example of this is in the way we value how “good we are” based on our past. For example, in an evolutionary perspective, the human species is best at judging what is best for them in a given environment. If it looks good for humans to kill some bad people (for example, if some bad people are to be hanged), then it would be good if it should shoot to kill, so that it kills more bad people. An ideal human environment would be such a society where all humans work together just as carefully while also meeting to give out orders and go out to kill other humans.
In contrast, it is common for a healthy group to want an entirely different set of rules from the population they are living in. This is where utilitarianism/neuroticism/intellectualism come into play.
With regard to the other two, our preferences are not solely based on how we live, they could also be based upon what is expected of us. Human life is filled with obligations, commitments, and responsibilities. Some people want to keep one’s spouse or close family member on the job—or who knows that is more morally wrong. Others want to have kids or do whatever other good it can to make a living making some