Other versions of consequentialism may be generated by making small changes in this theory, as we shall see, so long as the new theory stays faithful to the broad idea that morality is all about producing the right kinds of overall consequences. Should it count if it is based on a factual mistake or if it is malicious? There are many different forms of consequentialism depending on how one values outcomes. Hence the consequences will probably be better. But it was the precise manner and position that made you win. So the total happiness we had is three times the happiness I had. Now, rationality and objectivity are impartial; they do not favor one person over another. Ethical altruism carries the opposite sentiment from ethical egoism. The criticisms of consequentialism raise a number of fundamental questions that are important in ascertaining the relationship with criminal law and justice practice. For what is meant by love here? Common-sense morality and consequentialism. Consequentialism says you should do this; but moral common sense says that you should not. Philosophical Studies: An International Journal for Philosophy in the Analytic Tradition,151(3), 393412. Her expectation that it will produce or promote that good outcome is her reason for performing the action. Hedonism is a type of consequentialism that states that the pursuit of pleasure should be the highest moral priority. The fact that we do not know the overall consequences of our actions makes room for further versions of consequentialism. But Jill had handled gold a few times before and could make a good guess about whether the lumps were really gold. If people can get where they are going more quickly, they will probably use the time they saved to do things that will add happiness to their lives or the lives of others. In this article we will look at what act consequentialism is and whether it . 3. The theoretical world of entrepreneurship. If there is an answer, perhaps it is something like this: both A itself and the things A causes are things that happen if you do A rather than the alternatives to A. This article describes different versions of consequentialism. Act utilitarianism often shows "the end justifies the means" mentality. Deontological ethics is best understood through the contrast of utilitarianism which is based on consequentialism, or the idea that the morality of an action is valued based on its consequences,. Cognitive film and media ethics. The rights and wrongs of consequentialism. According to Rule Consequentialism, the right thing for each person in the community near the river to do is to follow the rule, Throw garbage in the dump, not in the river. Even if nobody else is going to the dump, and your going to the dump causes only inconvenience and no benefit, Rule Consequentialism says to take your garbage to the dump because that is what the best set of community rules would require. Studentsshould always cross-check any information on this site with their course teacher. For example, killing one person to save five others would be considered moral according to this theory because it would result in greater overall happiness than if no one was killed. For another example, one important implication of an action I take may be that I (already) am a certain kind of person. (Before explaining this point, we should note that consequentialism on most versions is a theory about the moral quality of actions. However, once one introduces such a complex standard of goodness for consequences, questions arise as to how to rate the relative importance of the parts of the standard and about how such a view can be given theoretical elegance. So looking for a range of 'realistic' - real life, true to life, matter of fact, everyday, &c. - situations to which it applies misses its totally general applicability. Arguably it was not. . While it may violate certain international humanitarian laws due to immediate risks associated with these activities (rule level), they ultimately benefit humanity if peace can be brought about (state level). One criticism of consequentialism is that it ignores individual rights in favor of collective outcomes (McElwee, 2010). Hence consequentialism conflicts with common sense. For if good consequences is meaningless, then it cannot be correct to define right action in terms of good consequences, as consequentialism normally does. The right act is the act which maximises well-being. Suppose someone from Tuberculosis Aid comes to my door, says only, Would you give to Tuberculosis Aid? and hands me a pamphlet, which explains their evil plans on page 2. All articles are edited by a PhD level academic. Consequentialism would seem to say that you should do this, but moral common sense says that you should not. Consider this argument for Plain Scalar Consequentialism, which is based on one proposed in Mill (1861): One worry about this argument is that 1 seems false. For example, people often procrastinate from laziness or fear, knowing that they are hurting themselves in the long run. Consequentialism is an ethical theory that judges an actions moral correctness by its consequences. In Section 2 we shall look at two initial reasons to think consequentialism is true and some worries about those reasons. An everyday example of act utilitarianism would be the following: Suppose that a person is given a book as a birthday present and when they are done reading it, a friend asks to borrow it.. That is why the position of the hand matters to me. For instance, most people would agree that lying is wrong. The philosophy of consequentialism is based on the belief that the moral and ethical value of one's action should be judged by the consequence of such action. You cannot know all that before you act (or after). If only permanent things mattered, then your happiness and misery in this life would not matter at all; but surely they do matter. Reasonable estimates of consequences seem to involve a different kind of probability from that discussed in 1.b above. Therefore, an action is rationally justifiable insofar as it does good overall. Consequentialism is an ethical theory that judges whether or not something is right by what its consequences are. For example, an extra dollar does more good for a poor person than for a rich person. The objection to this theory is the requirement of sacrifice. All utilitarian theories share four key elements: consequentialism, welfarism, impartiality, and aggregationism. See Jackson (1991). When we are thinking about morality, that is usually because we are puzzled about some hard question. (Premise), What each person ultimately desires is only her own happiness. (Premise), An all-knowing impartial being would, overall, wish for the greatest possible balance of satisfaction of the desires of all people. Consequentialism and Criminal Justice Practice. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Consequentialism. Consequentialism refers to those moral theories that hold that the consequences of a particular action form the basis for any valid moral judgement about that action. Children, mothers, grandmothers and grandfathers are non-combatants. Consequentialism. Here too you end up having had twice as much happiness as I had, so the total happiness we had is three times the happiness I had. Campbell, Richmond, and Sowden, Lanning, eds. Utilitarianism theory (or universal hedonism) refers to an ethical theory that determines the morality of the actions of an individual based on their outcome. https://doi.org/10.1080/0731129x.2017.1345221, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/egoism/. The most famous version of this theory is utilitarianism. One could produce more overall happiness in the world by doing charity work tomorrow than by watching television all day tomorrow. Utilitarianism suggests that the only item of intrinsic worth is happiness, but there are also other commodities that are worth considering. The history of utilitarianism. Utilitarian Morality and the Personal Point of View.. Before we check out these examples, you should note that a utilitarian considers all people to be of equal value to society. Consequentialism and Environmental Ethics can be read as an attempt to correct this misunderstanding. Perhaps the most standard precise version of consequentialism is Plain Consequentialism. Email: hainesw@hkucc.hku.hk Now in one sense your prescription was wrong, but in another sense it was morally right. Now readers may think that epistemic communism is the correct metaepistemological theory, in which case they are free to adopt conventionalist . Consequentialism states that an actions moral value is determined by its consequences. Expectable Consequentialism says that an action can be right even if I do not think reasonably about it at all, so long as it is the action I would have estimated to have the best consequences if I had done a reasonable job of making an estimate. My situation stated above falls under . examples of moral decisions in everyday life. Reasonable Consequentialism says that for an action of mine to be right, I must actually come to a reasonable conclusion beforehand about the consequences. What we are saying about a knife when we say that it is a good one is very different from what we are saying about a painting when we say that it is a good one; and similarly the import of good seems to differ in the phrases good mathematician, good liar, good father, and good batch of crack. It is the only moral framework that can be used to justify military force or war. Friendly Consequentialism: Of all the things a person might do at any given moment, the morally right action is the one that has the best consequences for that person and her friends. Suppose that by killing X, an entirely innocent person, we can save the lives of 10 other innocent people, A consequentialist would say that killing X is justified because it would result in only 1 person dying, rather than 10 people dying, It seems sensible to base ethics on producing happiness and reducing unhappiness, It seems sensible to base ethics on the consequences of what we do, since we usually take decisions about what to do by considering what results will be produced. If you decide by looking to the consequences, you are not really an honest person. A different kind of reply to the objection is to propose a new standard for the goodness of consequences. However, she also loves to explore different topics such as psychology, philosophy, and more. It requires much time and knowledge, which many people do not possess. Not every version of consequentialism is anthropocentric, and as several contributors point out, some or all of the often very strong claims defended by non-anthropocentric thinkers can be expressed in a consequentialist framework. 3 says that she has another desirethe desire that all her other desires be fulfilled as much as possible.
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