Question

Pick one approach and explain why you chose it:

• Utilitarianism works best as our ethical theory.
• Kant works best as our ethical theory.
• Pluralism is the best approach since it allows us to use both theories.

Answer 1

Utilitarianism works best as our ethical theory.

Utilitarianism suggests that an act would be considered ethical if it maximizes benefit to maximum number of people and reduce any pain. This would mean that it looks at the consequence of an action and not fulfilling the duty as in the Kantian ethics or the character of the person as in virtue ethics. One of the most important reasons is that it provides more flexibility for the moral agents by allowing them to choose the best course of action while also preserving their autonomy because it doesn’t stick to any rules other than the consequences. Secondly, moral agents would feel that they were able to increase utility or help more people at any given point of time as people would tend to compare the outcomes of their actions. Utilitarianism, unlike the duty ethics do not stick to the same procedure or result any time thus making it more contextual which means the outcome would depend on the context.

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