To illustrate the difference in decision-making between a committed utilitarian and someone who holds an objection to utilitarian ethics, let's consider the classic philosophical dilemma involving a runaway trolley.

Scenario: The Runaway Trolley

Situation: A trolley is heading down a track towards five people who are tied up and unable to move. You are standing next to a lever that can divert the trolley onto another track where there is one person tied up.

Utilitarian Choice: A committed utilitarian aims to maximize overall happiness or minimize overall suffering. In this scenario, the utilitarian would likely choose to pull the lever, diverting the trolley onto the track with one person. The reasoning is straightforward: by taking this action, one life is lost, but five are saved. The net result is a reduction in suffering and an increase in the total amount of happiness or well-being.

Objection-Based Choice: Someone who objects to the utilitarian perspective might focus on the moral principle of the sanctity of life and the categorical imperative not to treat individuals merely as a means to an end. From this perspective, each person's life has intrinsic worth, and actively deciding to kill one person is morally impermissible, even if it leads to a better overall outcome. Thus, this person might choose not to pull the lever, arguing that it is wrong to intentionally cause harm, regardless of the potential benefits.

Reflection: The utilitarian reasoning is often criticized on the grounds that it can justify sacrificing individual rights for the greater good, which can be seen as ethically problematic. The objection to utilitarianism in this scenario revolves around the belief that there are moral rules that should not be broken, even if following them leads to less optimal outcomes in terms of happiness or well-being. This highlights a fundamental tension between a results-oriented ethical framework and one that prioritizes adhering to moral principles or duties.

In two paragraph

1. Reflect on yourself:

In your view, consider how this situation strengthens and supports the objection (thus showing weakness to utilitarianism), or does it help strengthen utilitarianism by showing how a utilitarian could respond to that objection?

1. Discuss with your peers:

Discuss the scenarios raised by your peers, and if they use that scenario to defend utilitarianism, consider what the objector might say in response; if they use that scenario to challenge utilitarianism, consider what a utilitarian might say in response.