Persuasive Essay On Torture

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Recommended: Principles of virtue ethics

How far will one person go to gather intelligence that could possibly save thousands of lives? After the terrorist attacks on September 11th a philosophical debate ignited on whether or not torture could ever be justified. Is torture ever morally permissible? Shortly after these horrific attacks some began to say the answer is yes. Others such as deontologist say nothing has changed since the day before. Furthermore, U.S. instances of torture are rooted in a longer history before September 11, such as torture regimes in U.S. prisons and jails. Two of the most common theories regarding torture are utilitarianism and deontology, however some say they provide and insignificant purchase of the problem and that virtue ethics can be more effective. Both utilitarianism and deontology only make use of hypothetical situations that only arise in moments of extremity. Advocates of virtue ethics discuss situations that account for multiple (almost all) situations of life. The use of human torture for the outcome of happiness is said to be selfish and even egotistic at times. The four main virtues of virtue ethics are courage, temperance, justice, and prudence. These virtues will set a standard not only for when to torture, but also why if at all. Torture is a voluntary act that is seen to some as futile. The two main parameters of the debate discuss if under certain circumstances, to retain crucial information, that it is permitted to torture only to prevent greater harm, or if torture should be completely prohibited. According to dictionary.com torture is “the act of inflicting excruciating pain, as punishment or revenge, as a means of getting a confession or information, or for sheer cruelty”. Some describe these methods as barbaric and bru...

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...ssed in part of this essay, torture can be misguiding. Criminals often lead the torturer on with false information. In other words, there are other more effective uses of interrogation than torture. On the contrary, the short term benefits that torture rarely provides does not outweigh the long term effects. It has a destructive physiological effect, instigates future discrepancies, and does not demonstrate a strong country. Justifying torture even in severe cases undermines the standards for human rights and degrades a society as a whole. In conclusion torture cannot be morally justified on consequentialist, and even circumstantial, grounds. It is self-contradictory to remove human rights in order to protect them. Fundamental values cannot be sacrificed when addressing torture, a vice such as that can harm the United States much more than any terrorist cell could.

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