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Utilitarianism

            
            
            
             An apparent 19 year old male is brought to the emergency room by ambulance experiencing respiratory failure related to the patient's AIDS virus. The patient is accompanied by his girlfriend who states that the patient has a do not resuscitate (DNR) order. As the emergency room physician tries to contact the patient's primary care physician he finds that the patient is under the care of a pediatrician and becomes suspicious about the DNR order. The doctor then confronts the girlfriend about the age of the patient because he is unable to communicate due to his respiratory condition. The girlfriend gives in and admits that the actual age of the patient is 17. The doctor immediately intubates the patient in an effort to stabilize his respiratory condition. After the patient is stabilized he informs the doctor that he does not want to be intubated again or placed on a respirator. After the patient's mother arrives the physician explains the preceding happenings including the DNR order given by the patient. The mother reluctantly goes along with her son's wishes and signs the documentation implementing the DNR order.
             The patient soon confronts the doctor and makes him promise to stick to the DNR order no matter what his condition, the physician agrees. Shortly afterwards the patient goes into respiratory arrest. All the parties involved in this situation are present when the respiratory arrest occurs. The physician stands by with all intentions of honoring the DNR but within thirty seconds of the arrest, the mother orders the physician to intubate. The physician looks over at the patient as he shakes his head indicating that he does not want to be resuscitated, the physician is also aware that the patient is within 2 weeks of being 18. .
             The major dilemma in this situation is who gets to make the life or death decision. It is clear what the patient wants for his course of treatment, but the mother is equally clear in the treatment her son should receive.


Essays Related to Utilitarianism

1. Utilitarianism

There are different forms of Utilitarianism, two of which are act-utilitarianism and rule-utilitarianism. ... With these two definitions in mind, we look at the questions: "How does rule-utilitarianism attempt to solve the apparent problems of act-utilitarianism? ... First, I want to discuss some objections that have been noted on both of these forms of utilitarianism. ... This leads in to the idea that this type of utilitarianism is better in theory, rather than in practice. ... In that sense, that's where act-utilitarianism comes in to play. ...

  • Word Count: 544
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Definition of Utilitarianism

Definition of Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is an ethical theory developed in the modern period by Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and John Stuart Mill (1806-73) to promote fairness in British legislation during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries when the interests of the upper classes tended to prevail and the sufferings of the lower classes were neglected. Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that calls for putting benevolence into action. Mill interprets the term utilitarianism as signifying any moral theory (the terms ethical and moral are used synonymously by Bentham and Mill,) in which...

  • Word Count: 686
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

3. Utilitarianism

Mill believes that the proper moral ethics is Utilitarianism. ... I think that in theory utilitarianism is a good, but it also has its shortcomings. ... Mill's theory of utilitarianism can be disputed in many ways by many different people, all to which Mill refutes in his own essay Utilitarianism. ... It is this fact that leads one to believe that utilitarianism can lead to disastrous consequences. ... I believe that in theory Utilitarianism is a good idea. ...

  • Word Count: 1452
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

4. Utilitarianism

Mill was best renowned for his idea of "Utilitarianism."" ... Mill describes two major elements in utilitarianism. ... The story is a very extreme case of utilitarianism. ... According to a critique of utilitarianism written by Bernard Williams, Williams used two situations to emphasize the expectations utilitarianism puts on people. ... Under utilitarianism, Jim is obligated to kill that one Indian. ...

  • Word Count: 1732
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism. Explain Bentham's version of Utilitarianism. Utilitarianism is the belief that the value of a thing or an action is determined by its utility (usefulness). ... Criticise Bentham's view of utilitarianism. ... None of these points disprove Utilitarianism, but some would find it unacceptable on these grounds. ...

  • Word Count: 509
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. Mill's Utilitarianism

In its basic form this is Jeremy Benthams" definition of utilitarianism. You cannot talk about utilitarianism without mentioning Bentham. ... This is called act-utilitarianism. ... Mill's version of utilitarianism focuses on rule-utilitarianism. ... The new theory was called rule-utilitarianism. ...

  • Word Count: 357
  • Approx Pages: 1

7. Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism is the ethical principle that action is right if it tends to maximize happiness, not only that of the agent but of everyone affected by his/her act. ... The basis of Utilitarianism is that happiness and pleasure are valuable and pain and suffering are not. ... Since everyone is considered equal, utilitarians disagree with any arbitrary distinctions as to who is worthy of concern and who isn't; meaning that they egoism, racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination Epicurus was the first to introduce Utilitarianism to the world. ... Utilitarianism seems to do a pretty...

  • Word Count: 568
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: High School

8. The Philosophy of Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism is ultimately the child of egoism and Kantian Duty. ... It is then broken down into two units, act utilitarianism and rule utilitarianism. ... He touches on how in the definition of act utilitarianism "net" should be paid attention too. ... Contrariwise, he gives a resilient argument against act utilitarianism when discussing promises. ... Overall, I personally believe that rule utilitarianism is a more morally correct theory. ...

  • Word Count: 703
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

9. Utilitarianism and morality

It would seem that utilitarianism would deem these actions acceptable. ... Another flaw that occurs in utilitarianism is that it can become too demanding and unrealistic. ... Since the original idea of utilitarianism which is known as classical utilitarianism, other theorists have extended and made alterations to the original idea in order to make it more realistic and practical in everyday life. Classical utilitarianism is hedonistic, it believes that happiness is the one ultimate good and unhappiness is the one ultimate evil but utilitarianism has changed slightly from this completely simpli...

  • Word Count: 1639
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

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