Capstone Essay
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Philosophy
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Dec 6, 2023
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Uploaded by caleschueler
Liberty University
Ethics Capstone Submitted to Professor Provenzola
ETHC101_B13_202340
By Cale Schueler
October 8th, 2023
The goal of this paper is to defend the metaethical theory from my discussion of Compare
and Contrast Metaethical theories. Secondly, to apply the metaethical theory I have chosen and apply it to the issue I discussed in the Ethical Application discussion. The metaethical theory I will be defending is the theory of Utilitarianism. The issue I will continue to defend from a few weeks ago will be the topic of abortion through the lens of Utilitarianism. Ultimately, in this paper, I will strive to weigh all the positives and negatives of Utilitarianism while then making my best defense with this metaethical theory applied to the discussion of abortion. Utilitarianism is a result-driven metaethical theory, so if the results are maximized for everyone to remain good there could be much benefit from it. This metaethical theory will also be used to look at abortion and determine what is the best result that is considered best for everyone involved. To start the defense for the metaethical theory of Utilitarianism, I will first recall what it is exactly. In Moral Choices
, Scott Rae says, “Utilitarianism is a teleological system in which the
morality of an act is determined by the result. In fact, sometimes utilitarianism and teleological ethics are used interchangeably. Utilitarianism commonly argues that the moral choice is the one that produces the greatest good for the greatest number of people, or the moral choice is the course of action that produces more good consequences than harmful ones”. Utilitarianism is a very simple metaethical theory that is not difficult to apply for most. In its simplest form, it is an ethical system very similar to that of an approach to any problem with a pros and cons list. This system simply ways to determines the best result for everyone involved in the situation. Another way it could be perceived is what many of us are taught growing up, learning the consequences of our actions helps us to make better decisions for ourselves and or others in the future. Another positive of the ethical system of Utilitarianism is that it is much less legalistic than many other ethical systems such as Deontology. Today many people are for less strict forms of ethics to uphold so they prefer something that has the best result for them and others. The result of any of
their actions is what they determine as moral or immoral. The mindset of Utilitarianism is not to determine what actions are necessarily evil or good but the outcome instead. So whether it is murder, drugs, alcohol, sexual assault, or war, any of these actions are usually considered unethical, Utilitarianism looks at the result. Utilitarianism would still find all of these examples unethical because the outcome is worse for the majority of people involved. This mindset can and is still used in many areas of our world today. If we look at business, we weigh the options of
cutting employees to save costs. Many countries' policies are made looking at the benefits and harm done by a bill or agenda. Another perfect example of when to use this sort of mindset can very well be in the military. As a leader sometimes it is necessary to choose the lesser of two evils that justifies the guilt of losing men under your command. A specific example that comes to
mind is from the highly renowned movie Saving Private Ryan, we see Tom Hanks's character Captain Miller rationalize with his Sargeant how he rationalizes his decisions, he has to give orders that might get his men killed but it is for the greater good of the entirety of his squad, platoon, and ultimately the war effort. Tough decisions needed to be made to achieve the ultimate
goal of defeating the enemy would bring results that would help thousands of other soldiers make it home one day. The lesser of two evils harps on the ethical mentality of weighing the cost, one of the most difficult decisions our world leaders had to make during wartime was in 1945. “Harry Truman apparently saw his decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in this way. To do so was clearly an evil, a wrong to many innocent people. On the other hand, the Japanese leadership, Truman thought, would otherwise refuse to surrender, causing the deaths of far more people than would be killed by the bombs.” Although there are many good reasons to apply Utilitarianism, it also has some shortcomings. The metaethical system of Utilitarianism results is based on a majority, so naturally the minority in whatever
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situation can be mistreated and without representation. In Moral Choices we see exactly how this
system can be misused, “For example, in the pre-Civil War South, slavery was clearly justifiable from a utilitarian point of view. It provided cheap labor that made the South very prosperous and clearly benefited more people than it harmed. But no one today would justify slavery on any grounds, let alone utilitarian ones”. Utilitarianism can be used effectively for many ethical situations, it is a simple but effective way to troubleshoot day-to-day or bigger issues faced in society. It has some weaknesses and grey areas like most metaethical systems used today in secular society. Overall it is a system I would highly recommend for certain uses but it is not something that should dictate every aspect of ethics for a person's life. The topic I chose to defend for the ethical application discussion and that I will continue to defend is the issue of abortion using Utilitarianism. As I previously discussed, the meta-ethical
theory is all about making decisions based on the results that bring the most good benefiting as many people as possible. When it comes to abortion there are two main results, with a potential third option as well. The main two are whether the mother decides to give birth to her child or the mother does not want to go through the process of pregnancy and raise a child so she decides to have an abortion. Let's look at all the possible results and outcomes that can come from a mother having her baby. First is that she gets to become a mother, which for almost all of history is considered a blessing for the woman. Throughout history, motherhood has been considered to bring many benefits to a woman's life. One of the greatest benefits I see researching feedback about motherhood is the joy it brings not just in the early years but they get to experience it through every phase of the child's life. If we look to the Bible we get a perfect example of this in Luke 1:57-58, “When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son.
Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.”
The job of a mother is also rewarding because they raise the next generation of society. The impact is tremendous on the world, without mothers many sons and daughters would not have grown up to help contribute to society. Mary is a perfect example of the significance of motherhood, “The man who baptized Jesus was once a child who sat in the lap of Elizabeth. She taught him his first words, how to eat, how to walk, and held his little hand until he could stand on his own. He was strong in spirit because his mother strengthened his spirit”. These are just some of the many in a long list of benefits that can come from the role of motherhood. The decision to raise a baby also means that there is an endless amount of good that can be available for the newborn child. Life as a result is the biggest good of all that comes from pregnancy. There is a reason it is called the miracle of life, something unique and special takes place. There is an overall good that comes with brand new life which is what Utilitarianism is all about. Now let's look at the other potential result, having an abortion. There are many reasons why a woman may not want to have an abortion. Pregnancy and childbirth can be demanding, physically, psychologically, emotionally, financially, or all of the above. “The most common sub reason given was that the woman could not afford a baby now because she was unmarried (42%).
Thirty-eight percent indicated that having a baby would interfere with their education, and the same proportion said it would interfere with their employment. In a related vein, 34% said they could not afford a child because they were students or were planning to study”. An abortion may also be needed if it prevents a health risk to the mother if she gives birth to the child. And lastly, there are rare cases where the mother has been horrifically raped and does not want to give birth to that child. There could be many positives for the mom through the result of abortion but there can be none for the baby. There is a great chance of good results for both the mother and baby if childbirth is the chosen option. The third result I wanted to mention is that a mother can give
birth but if they are unable to support the child for whatever reason there are options such as adoption or foster care which can still have overall good, positive outcomes for both lives. The metaethical theory of Utilitarianism is a theory I would highly recommend for many circumstances in life. Its application allows for an analytical approach to problems and has the potential to determine the best outcome for everyone involved. It has some weaknesses regarding
its idea that the action is irrelevant, all that matters is maximizing the result. Unlike many other metaethical theories that do put emphasis on the action that leads to the outcome, this is not the case with Utilitarianism. It also presents an interesting defense case regarding abortion. I believe that the best possible outcome through abortion from the lens of Utilitarianism is that life is sustained, not ended. In any other instance, the death of another party involved would not be considered the best decision that brings about maximum good. The only shortcoming of this argument is if one does not agree that the fetus is a living child. Still, Utilitarianism is a system that strives to benefit all parties involved and because of this I believe it may not be perfect but it
is a productive approach in many circumstances. Works Cited
2015. Vitalsource.com. 2015.
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https://libertyonline.vitalsource.com/reader/books/9780310536437/epubcfi/6/20
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Hill, Thomas E. 1983. “Moral Purity and the Lesser Evil.” The Monist
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“The Blessings of Motherhood - JA Show Articles.” 2018. May 3, 2018.
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Finer, Lawrence, Lori Frohwirth, Lindsay Dauphinee, Susheela Singh, and Ann Moore. 2005.
“Reasons U.S. Women Have Abortions: Quantitative and Qualitative Perspectives.” Guttmacher
Institute. September 1, 2005. https://www.guttmacher.org/journals/psrh/2005/reasons-us-women-
have-abortions-quantitative-and-qualitative-perspectives.