Preview

Utilitarianism: The Trolley Problem, By John Stuard Mill

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
649 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Utilitarianism: The Trolley Problem, By John Stuard Mill
Utilitarianism theory is the most widely used ethical theory today, and also the most powerful and persuasive approaches to normative ethics in the history of philosophy. It is the rightness or wrongness of an action, which determined by its usefulness. It is based on the principle of Utility which John Stuard Mill stated that “Actions are right to the degree that they tend to promote the greatest good for the greatest number.” This means that in any situation, where there is a moral choice, one should do that which results in the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. In addition, many varieties of the view discussed that Utilitarianism is the morally right action that produces the best, in this case, means “the greatest amount of good for the greatest number.” …show more content…
It is a thought experiment in ethics, which there are five people tied up and unable to move on the railway. Then, the runaway trolley was moving down to the railway tracks and headed straight to those people. If you were in that situation, you would be able to pull the lever, so the trolley will switch to a different set of tracks. However, you notice that there is one person on the sidetrack; this means that you will be killing him instead. This is a very difficult decision to make, as you could either or nothing, and the trolley kills the five people on the main track or pulls the lever, so the trolley onto the side track where it will kill one

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Ethics and Utilitarianism

    • 1026 Words
    • 5 Pages

    What is Utilitarianism? Utilitarianism is an ethical framework for effective moral action. It’s a philosophical concept that holds an action to be held right if it tends to promote happiness for the greatest number of people. The essence of utilitarianism is in its concept of pleasure and pain. It defines the morally right actions as those actions that maximize pleasure or happiness and minimize pain or evil. Utilitarianism is all about making the right choices that will consequently promote the greatest amount of happiness. It can be traced all the way back to the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus, but the name most frequently associated with utilitarianism is that of Jeremy Bentham. According to utilitarianism, we should evaluate an action by looking at is consequences, weighing the good effects against the bad effects on all the people affected by it. If the good outweighs the bad, it tends to be a good action; if the bad outweigh the good, it tends to be a bad action. (DeGeorge 45)…

    • 1026 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism ethics emphasize that action should be morally beneficial to a group. This course of ethics is often known as “the greatest good for the greatest number” or simply put, “the greater good” (Boylan, 2009). In other words, the consequence of any ethical action should be beneficial for all by mass appeal. This is a common underlying theme for ethics in capitalist economies and business as well as in democratic governments (Boylan, 2009).…

    • 761 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism the theory that the right moral act is the one that produces the greatest good for society, emphasizes NOT RULES BUT RESULTS.…

    • 1265 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The creed which accepts as the foundation of morals, Utility, or the Greatest Happiness Principle, holds that actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness” (11). That quote is from “Utilitarianism” written by John Stuart Mill. Mill is noted in history as a man who pushed for radical change of social and legal principles using Utilitarianism as his guide. That quote sums up his belief in that theory. In this essay I will be discussing Mill, the theory of Utilitarianism and how that theory relates to contemporary ethical issues.…

    • 430 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    A Case Study: The Plight of Dr. Ethos The predicament faced by Dr. Ethos is a rare, yet challenging concept to think about. An old grumpy man walks into a crowded hospital complaining about a toothache. Through his constant nagging, he is eventually admitted to see the chief physician, Dr. Ethos. As Dr. Ethos was examining the old man, he was urgently paged to a separate exam room. As the doctor arrives in the room, he discovers ten young men and women who are in dire need of various organs in order to stay alive.…

    • 1741 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    This theory is a consequentialist based ethical theory which states you must choose the action that increases the total utility. John Stuart Mill was a key proponent of Utilitarianism. Utility is defined as the total happiness or pleasure, minus the total unhappiness or pain involved in the action. Another name for utility is the Greatest Happiness principle. From the definition of utility, pleasure and the absence of pain are the only things desirable as ends in themselves and are the only things that are good.…

    • 1730 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism is a theory in normative ethics holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes overall happiness. Utilitarianism can be characterized as a quantitative and reductionist approach to ethics. It can be contrasted with deontological ethics which does not regard the consequences of an act as a determinant of its moral worth.…

    • 447 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism revolves around the concept of “the end justifies the means.” It believes that outcomes as a result of an action have a greater value compared to the latter, the morally right action is the action that produces the most good. It also states that the most ethical thing to do is to take advantage of happiness for the good of the society. This normative theory considers the overall good for all people and not just a single person.…

    • 517 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism theories hold that the moral worth of actions or practices is determined by their consequences. An action or practice is right if it leads to the best possible balance of good consequences over bad consequences for all affected parties. (Arnold, pp 17)…

    • 790 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Pleasures and pain contribute in determining the classification of one’s actions. In Mill’s Utilitarianism, he examines what determines an action to be considered right or wrong, his own version of the hedonistic utilitarianism argument. He claims that these qualities, including the quantity, are an important factor in determining, when included in the consequences, the criteria of an action. The consequences are significant in determining the results of one’s actions.…

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Definition of “Utilitarianism” is an ethical theory holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes the overall "good" of the greatest number of individuals. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined by its resulting outcome. The most influential contributors to this theory are considered to be Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill.”1 Utilitarianism is a simple theory and its results are easy to apply. It also allows for degrees of right and wrong, and for every situation the choice between actions is clear cut: always choose that which has the greatest utility. Utilitarianism is believed to have been derived from "Eudaimonia" which is the central concept in Aristotelian ethics. “In Aristotle's works, eudaimonia was used as a term for the highest human good, and so it is the aim of practical philosophy, including ethics and political philosophy, to consider (and also experience) what it really is, and how it can be achieved.”2…

    • 1087 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Moral theories try to explain what distinguishes right actions from wrong ones. The theory of utilitarianism tries to do the same by incorporating several aspects that set up a moral standard to help investigate the balance between right and wrong. John Stuart Mill, a British philosopher of the 1800’s defends the utilitarian school of thought by pointing out what it is that makes utilitarianism the standard theory for morality. According to Utilitarianism as explained by Mill in his essay “In Defense of Utilitarianism” the fundamental principle of morality is the promotion of happiness on a scale that benefits an individual and the ones around him; also to promote pleasure and to prevent pain.…

    • 576 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the field of normative ethics, utilitarianism is a perennial philosophical view. Utilitarianism holds that a “morally right action is that which produces the most good” and promotes the maximum utility of happiness; for humanity (the aggregate). John Stuart Mill, a contributor to the field of utilitarianism, embraced Jeremy Bentham’s ‘greatest-happiness principle’ that states “the greatest happiness of the greatest number that is the measure of right and wrong” . Mill offered an alternative to Bentham’s view in his book “Utilitarianism” by introducing the theory of “qualitative distinction between pleasures” . Furthermore, Utilitarianism includes Mill’s proof of the principle of utility.…

    • 1191 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Good and Evil in High Noon

    • 1373 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Utilitarianism is an ethical theory most often ascribed to the philosopher John Stuart Mill. The utilitarian theory suggests actions and/or intentions are not right or wrong; rather the morality of a choice or act is determined by the outcome or result. Utilitarian’s believe outcomes can be determined in advance of an action and the ethical choice is one which provides the best result or most happiness for the greatest number of individuals (e.g., pleasure, happiness, health, knowledge, satisfaction). The utility theory asserts morality is a means to some other end, it does not stand on its own as being intrinsically moral.…

    • 1373 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Utilitarianism is a moral theory that an action is morally right if that action produces the greatest of good and happiness for the most number of people. Therefore, one should act if and only if one’s action produce the greatest possible balance of good and happiness over bad and unhappiness. Being one of the method that people commonly use to decide the rightness and wrongness of an action, utilitarianism provides a clear guidelines of the determination an action’s rightness. In addition, utilitarianism offers an objective way to resolve self-interest conflicts, and gives a simple methodology and flexible approach for moral decision making. Yet, nothing in reality can be prefect, including utilitarianism.…

    • 727 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays