Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is the doctrine that actions are right if they are useful or for the benefit of a majority. It is the doctrine that states an action is right insofar as it promotes happiness‚ and that the greatest happiness of the greatest amount of people should be the guiding principle of conduct. Aside from selecting the action that results in the greatest amount of happiness‚ utilitarians also think about the consequences each of their actions or situations would provide. They
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Assignment #2 In this assignment you are going to present Kantian arguments against the taking of recreational drugs that are currently illegal in the U.S.‚ such as heroin‚ cocaine‚ and ecstasy. Do not discuss laws or illegality; just stick to the questions as they are written and number your answers. Use the following maxim: In order to maximize my pleasure‚ I will take recreational drugs whenever I feel like it. 1.Explain why this maxim is self-defeating‚ i.e.could not
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Immanuel Kant was an eighteenth century German philosopher whose moral views continue to be influential. He developed a deontological‚ absolute and objective ethical theory on the idea of moral law. Kant’s theory uses practical reason and looks at the argument before deciding what to do about the situation. It is described as being priori and synthetic (this meaning you don’t have to experience it to know what it means) and can be proven to be true or false without using experience. Kant believed
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Kant’s theory on deontology is a way of assessing one’s actions. One’s actions are either right or wrong in themselves. To determine if actions are right or wrong we do not look at the outcome in deontology. Instead Kant wants us to look at the way one thinks when they are making choices. Kant believes that we have certain moral duties in regards to one’s actions. It is our moral duty that motivates ones to act. Theses actions are driven either by reason or the desire for happiness. Since happiness is
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Kant and Duty Ethics In this paper I will first go into a detailed review of Kant’s second formulation of the first categorical imperative. I will explain in depth what the second formulation means and how Kant came to take on a philosophical position such as this. Next‚ I will describe the two most pertinent and grounded critiques that Feldman has regarding the second formulation. Then I will defend Kant’s formulation from these critiques. Finally I will summarize the above information and conclude
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Non-Fatal Offences Criticisms Essay The majority of non-fatal offences are included in the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 (OAPA) which was described by Professor JC Smith as ‘a rag bag of offences brought together from a variety of sources’. This view is widely shared throughout the legal system‚ although some argue that the law works in practise and so no reform is needed. However the law does not include the common offences of Assault and Battery‚ providing another call for reform.
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To what extent does Gaunilo’s criticism of Anselm’s argument succeed in demonstrating that the argument fails? Gaunilo‚ a Benedictine monk and contemporary of St Anselm was the first to raise objections to Anselm’s idea that God exists by definition‚ claiming within “On behalf of the Fool” that Anselm’s argument was not logical and needed to be discredited. Gaunilo famously claimed that Anselm’s conclusion that the non-existence of God is “unintelligible” cannot show that God necessarily exists
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Immanuel Kant concerns himself with deontology‚ and as a deontologist‚ he believes that the rightness of an action depends in part on things other than the goodness of its consequences‚ and so‚ actions should be judged based on an intrinsic moral law that says whether the action is right or wrong – period. Kant introduced the Categorical Imperative which is the central philosophy of his theory of morality‚ and an understandable approach to this moral law. It is divided into three formulations. The
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Cited: Ardolino‚ Frank. "Pinter ’s Betrayal and Shakespeare ’s Othello." The Explicator 65.1 (2006): 50+. Literature Resource Center. Web. 25 Nov. 2012 LaBlanc‚ L. Michael. "Jealousy." Shakespearean Criticism. Vol. 72. Detroit: Gale‚ 2003. Literature Resource Center. Web. 25 Nov. 2012. Shakespeare‚ William. “Othello” Literature: The Human Experience. Ed. Richard Abcarian
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Over time philosophers have written countless books‚ theories‚ and essays as a way of changing the way people think and view life. Immanuel Kant‚ a philosopher around the seventeen and early eighteenth century‚ was no different in his thoughts and writings about morality‚ freedom‚ reason‚ and standpoints. Morality being one of the most contradictory concepts out there‚ it only suits that there are numerous theories. Unlike Utilitarianism‚ which considers an actions morality to be dependent upon
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