Consequentialism is an extremely influential ethical system that most people don’t know they are using. Consequentialism can be very difficult to understand if explained in complex fashion, but it's actually very simple. This ethical system mainly consists of people thinking about the consequences before performing an action; furthermore one example of this could be thinking what the consequences could be if you didn't study for a test. The possibility of getting a bad grade would force many people to study. This idea of consequentialism has been around the planet for many years. Consequentialism is very similar to utilitarianism and is believed to be just recently called two different philosophies. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy …show more content…
Two of the most influential of these arts according to myself are The Lorax and Macbeth. In The Lorax, directed by Chris Renaud, there is one major ethical dilemma that the plot revolves around. A young man is in search of a certain and rare type of tree so that he can produce more of his thneeds which are a piece of cloth that can become a shirt, socks, and many other clothing types. The young man embarks on a long journey in search of these trees and after many weeks he eventually finds a gigantic garden of these trees. What the young man doesn’t know is that there are many animals in the forest that depend on these valuable trees and he starts cutting down the trees one by one. After awhile The Lorax, a powerful omniscient creature from the sky comes down to earth to warn the young man about how he could really impact the fragile animal ecosystem. Of course the young man doesn’t believe the Lorax and decides to continue destroying the precious forest. The animals are animated and try to get rid of the young man but he doesn’t budge and ends up building a ginormous factory and cutting down all the trees. After many years another young boy, Ted, finds a seed and tries to plant it but people won’t let him because they like not having trees and he does. The young man doesn’t think before doing an action which is the exact opposite of what consequentialism believes in. In my life I can relate to having to use consequentialism because sometimes people just get in the moment and don’t think about how their actions could affect them after the fact. Many people believe that things that they do will never catch up to them but eventually it will indeed catch up to them in the long run. When people don’t have mindset they become vulnerable to themselves and their impending actions. Another form of this vulnerability is peer pressure. Peer pressure can lead to horrific
asks “What are the costs?” and “What are the benefits?”. According to rule consequentialism, rules are selected entirely based on the goodness of their consequences and proceeds to claim that these rules govern what kind of acts are morally wrong. Basically, the rightness or wrongness of an action is contingent on whether it is obligatory or prohibited by an ideal set of rules. An ideal set of...
Consequentialism is a term used by the philosophers to simplify what is right and what is wrong. Consequentialist ethical theory suggests that right and wrong are the consequences of our actions. It is only the consequences that determine whether our actions are right or wrong. Standard consequentialism is a form of consequentialism that is discussed the most. It states that “the morally right action for an agent to perform is the one that has the best consequences or that results in the most good.” It means that an action is morally correct if it has little to no negative consequences, or the one that has the most positive results.
The utilitarian faces many problems because he loses any ability to live a personal life. By this is meant that in making decisions the utilitarian must consider the steps which lead to the highest level of goodness in society. The utilitarian reaches for the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Two main aspects dominate the light of utilitarian beliefs. The consequentialist principle explains that in determining the rightness or wrongness of an act one must examine the results that will follow. The utility principle is that you can only deem something to be good if it in itself will bring upon a specific desired state, such as happiness or fulfillment. There are two types of utilitarians: Act utilitarians and Rule utilitarians. An act utilitarian believes that a person must think things through before making a decision. The only exception to this idea applies with rules of thumb; decisions that need to be made spontaneously. The right act is the one that results in the most utility. Rule utilitarians believe that an act is only deemed appropriate if it fits in line with the outline of valid rules within a system of rules that target the most favorable outcome.
Consequentialists argue that punishing someone for their wrongdoings will ensure that they are less likely to commit this act again, but
In "King Lear", the dramatic chain of events resulting in so many sinners' deaths shows that cause and effect really does exist and that the two work together. Shakespeare was clever in the way he wove both elements into his plays. One didn't seem to be able to exist without the other.
Consequentialism and deontology are two different theories concerning with morality. Consequentialism believes in the concept of the end justifies the means. On the other hand, deontology does not believe in the concept of the ends justifies the means. It believes that right actions are defined by duty. Deontology is the opposite of consequentialism when it comes to moral ethics, making it the better approach.
Consequentialism is described as the theory that states actions are morally right based only on the consequences. Many of my actions are based in terms of consequences. Before, I used to take whatever actions that made my happy, but now, I think more about the results of my actions. More specifically, I think about the negative results. This has made into a bit of pessimist. Whenever I hear ideas, I am quick to think about the negative consequences first before the positive. This usually means that I am not keen on taking risks if the amount of negative consequences outnumber the good. I remember when I was first planning to come to George Fox University. When the idea first hit me, I was quick to think negative consequence of how expensive it was to come to the mainland for college. I wasn’t thinking how the university could benefit my future. Eventually, I figured the positive consequences of coming to George Fox outweighed the bad. On the bright side, at least in my view, being a pessimist has allowed to think farther ahead when it comes to planning. Every action has consequences, and my consequentialism has taught me the importance of thinking before taking action. If I take any actions, it will be the ones that have the fewest negative consequences for me and the people around
Kai Nielsen defended consequentialism and showed how it can still agree with commonsense, deontological convictions in his article “Traditional Morality and Utilitarianism.” His article focused on closing the gulf between consequentialism and deontology by showing how closely they can agree, and he further evaluated the systems and found that consequentialism as he sees it should be practiced is morally superior to traditional deontology. First, this essay will explain his argument that consequentialism squares with the commonsense convictions of deontology, and second, it will show how Nielsen arrived at the conclusion that consequentialism is a good moral system while deontology is faulty.
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth and the 1941 film Citizen Kane by Orson Welles are good examples of the consequences of uncontrolled ambition and corrupt power. Although each of the works takes place during very different time periods, brave soldier, Macbeth, and wealthy newspaper tycoon, Charles Foster Kane both have a need for recognition and control. However, when combined with a lack of ethics or morality, they end up destroying their lives and the lives of their friends and family as well. The best friends of these two protagonists, Banquo and Jedediah Leland, are also ambitious men. Their personal integrity and moral character provide a strong contrast to the two protagonists. Sadly, despite their good intentions and strong moral characters,
Consequentialism is an ethical perspective that primarily focuses upon the consequences resulting from an action and aims to eliminate the negative consequences. Within this framework there are three sub-categories: Egoism, Altruism and Utilitarianism.
Let us discuss consequentialism first. Consequentialism focuses on consequences as the most important factor in the decision making process (Donaldson 3). For consequentialists the motives of an act are not as important as what comes out of it. Utilitarianism is one of the branches of consequentialism. Utilitarianism believes in the greatest good for the number (Donaldson 3). This method along with egoist consequentialism was probably the one that w...
Utilitarianism is a moral theory that approaches moral questions of right and wrong by considering the actual consequences of a variety of possible actions. These consequences are generally those that either positively or negatively affect other living beings. If there are both good and bad actual consequences of a particular action, the moral individual must weigh the good against the bad and go with the action that will produce the most good for the most amount of people. If the individual finds that there are only bad consequences, then she must go with the behavior that causes the least amount of bad consequences to the least amount of people. There are many different methods for calculating the utility of each moral decision and coming up with the best
...ts. The consequential approach focuses on utilitarian, pragmatic outcomes of negative nature; non-consequentialism rejects stealing as something contrary to the inherent norms of morality. Both approaches should be used to fight stealing; however, certain principles seem more controversial when the consequential approach is applied. Non-consequential principles, although less pragmatic, help to make the right choice when non-consequential ones are less potent.
A similar, yet unique theme can be found in Shakespeare’s Macbeth. While A Streetcar Named Desire focuses on destruction by the hand of others reacting to a different characters’ greed, Macbeth acknowledges a different aspect. Macbeth focuses more on the downfall of characters through self-reflection of their actions and the realization of their wrong doing, as shown by Lady Macbeth, or belief in their absolute right to get what they
There are times in life where we choose between right or wrong. It can come into effect on how other people judge you based on their views of what's right or what's wrong. In the play Macbeth, William Shakespeare displayed a darker and a wrong side of humankind. Three main characters, in particular, showed similar traits of greediness. Banquo, who appears to be noble fails to resist his desires; Lady Macbeth overrules herself with greed to a fate of anguish. And finally, Macbeth becomes engulfed with greed that leads to horrible deeds. Shakespeare emphasizes that desire for power and wealth can overrule morality in human nature.