Is murder ever moral? When is it ok to kill another human being?
These are only a few of the questions that were addressed in the Harvard philosophy course. There are certain situations in life where these questions are hard to answer, where the simple answer ‘Never’ can’t apply. What if you have no choice but have to either kill one person or five because you can’t control your car anymore? Would you rather kill one person or five? This example was used by the professor and the majority answered that they would kill the one person because five others would be able to live. In either case, it’s the consequences that concern us. Personally I believe that murder in any case is immoral. We’re not to decide who gets to live or die. We also looked at a situation where someone asks to die in order to save others, and even though that’s not fair in any case, I think that helping someone to die in this situation is less immoral because the person gave their consent to die. Murder is so complex, that the line between moral and immoral is hard to define.
Yes, murder is immoral.
ReplyDeleteBut aren't there degrees of morality? Surely stealing an old woman's life savings is more immoral than stealing a cookie?
So, I ask you: which is more immoral: killing one person or killing five?
Then, consider the various situations Sandel mentions. For example, when you are the cab driver and your breaks don't wrk. Or when you are the observer on the bridge next to the fat man who is large enough to stop the cab.
Which is more moral, one or five? Does it change for each case? Is there any formula (maybe utilitarianism) that can be used in every case to make the moral decision?
You summarize some of these issues in your blog; I would like to here your opinions on them! :)