John Stuart Mill And Immanuel Kant's Moral Dilemmas

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There are several ways of examining morality philosophically. John Stuart Mill provides some Empirical insight which focuses on consequences. Immanuel Kant views morality in terms of motives. These are the two I will be using to examine my moral dilemma.
Before I can examine the implications of each moral view on the case, though, I must first define each view. Mill says you can find one thing that’s intrinsically valuable and all other values fall into place. That value, according to him, is happiness. So we must define all things in relation to the amount of happiness they give or take from us. Mill claims that there are two types of happiness each one distinct from the other. There is qualitative happiness which is typically mind-focused …show more content…

He also notes that his view of morality seeks the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. His concept of happiness is all inclusive; it cannot be constrained. According to Mill, we must evaluate the consequences of our decisions in relation to ourselves but also in relation to the happiness of others. In this way, it does not matter why people do what they do, it only matters what comes out as a result of it. To Mill, the value of an action is found only in the success of the action, not in the …show more content…

The happiness of the sitter would likely be decreased due to her financial situation and that would in turn affect her daughter. It may also affect her attitude and how well she does her job as babysitter to the woman’s children. The clear solution here in Mill’s eyes would be to offer the babysitter her address to avoid possible financial burden on the sitter and to keep everyone as happy as possible. It gets the greatest happiness for the greatest number of

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