individual has different views and opinions towards different controversies. There are two main ethic theories that try to explicate and validate moral rules: utilitarianism and deontological theories. Euthanasia has brought out many disputes and is a continuous ethical code of conduct amongst society. The theories of utilitarianism and deontological differentiate a great deal. Utilitarian’s are goal oriented people; they believe in human action. A utilitarian believes that you should always
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Act utilitarianism is a utilitarian theory of ethics which states that a person’s act is morally right if and only if it produces the greatest overall utility. In assessing a moral theory there are four adequate criteria which are: completeness‚ explanatory‚ practicability and moral conformation. For completeness‚ an ethical theory should support all meaningful moral claims‚ neglecting none of the claims. Next‚ there is explanatory power. For this assessment a theory should provide insight into what
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Examine the key features of utilitarianism (21) The theory of Utilitarianism is based on the concept of utility‚ a theory of usefulness. Utilitarianism is a system of morality that generates us with what the most useful thing to do in different situations and outcomes. Different Utilitarian approaches to morality have emerged each with their own theory of good and community of concerning individuals. Featuring the main influential contributors to this theory are Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill
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LUtilitarianism Utilitarianism is an ethical theory which acts as a guideline on how people should act in certain situations and was first introduced by a hedonist (pursuer of pleasure) named Jeremy Bentham who put forward the ‘Principle of Utility’ which said “The greatest happiness for the greatest number”. Utilitarianism is a theory which bases on the end purpose (teleological) of achieving pleasure‚ our decisions should be based on consequences in pursuit of the principle of utility (consequentialist)
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Deontology Deontology steps in where utilitarianism fails‚ utilitarianism fails in the idea that there are absolutely morally forbidden actions. But‚ in reality‚ even the worst actions are not always wrong‚ given extreme circumstances. Deontology is all about duty and moral laws. For instance‚ if a person does a good act‚ and it has a good outcome‚ from a utilitarianistic view‚ this person was right. However‚ in deontological view‚ this person is only right if the decision was made or action
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In his book‚ The Right and the Good‚ W.D. Ross defends the theory of moral pluralism‚ which is “the idea that there are several values that may be equally correct and fundamental‚ and yet in conflict with one another” (New World Encyclopedia). In accepting this approach‚ we must assume that our ideas of right and wrong are influenced by multiple sources. According to Ross‚ in order to act morally right‚ we must be able to maintain a balance between our conflicting duties‚ or prima facie obligations
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always wrong or always right with no exceptions. The time‚ place or culture have no power as it does in relativism which is more subjective (Moore). And in comparison to utilitarianism‚ absolutism targets the act and not the outcome. Since absolutism theory believes and focuses on opposite principles than relativism and utilitarianism‚ it would be fair to say that absolutism would strongly disagree in allowing the act of torture of the man. The objectiveness of absolutism would not allow torture to
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Utilitarianism and Genetic Engineering In the past thirty years‚ humans are witnessing a huge revolution in the genetic engineering industry. Having identified most of the Human Genome‚ gene sequencing has become programmed and extremely fast‚ and laboratory techniques in molecular biology allow for in-vitro fertilization and transfer of genetic material. Gene therapy and repair based on stem cells research allows for replacement of a defected allele in the DNA‚ and even a whole damaged tissue in
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Natural Rights and Utilitarianism 1) Locke’s concept of the social contract is to protect people’s rights. According to Locke the contract is between the people and these branches of government that they set up. The reason government arises the social contract between people‚ is because that people want to live longer and better. The legitimacy of the government comes from the fact we consent to set up that authority and protect our natural rights. For example‚ if we designate a group
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In the framework of human politics utilitarianism loses its normative fundamentals. Yes‚ on an abstract level utilitarianism is objective‚ unbiased and neutral. But when humans apply it as a tool they corrupt it with their innate biases passed onto them by their environmental influences no matter how much they attempt to separate
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