Examples Of Mill's Utilitarianism

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Do unto others the way you want to be treated by others. This statement is the golden rule of the Kantian philosophy. It is not morally right to force people to do things or to accept things that they do not wish to perform, just because it is the law that demands. According to the categorical imperative, people should make their choices rationally but not because “it is the only right thing to do.” For example, it is the right for every person to get medications when they are sick. However, people have the freedom not to take the medication, which can be based on their cultural, religious or personal philosophies. This means that the healthcare providers would not be justified to force that person to take any form of medication. However, what …show more content…

The focus should be the greater good. This means that people are supposed to make choices that lead to their happiness and have minimal harms to themselves and others. In other words, it is the principle of means justifies the ends. It implies that if the means are faulty so will be the end, and when the means are good, the outcome will be good. Therefore, the intention of taking action plays a key role in executing the actions and the outcomes. In simple terms, utilitarianism views moral actions as those that fulfill the needs of an individual while achieving positive social outcomes. Going by this point, utilitarianism would support the law making it mandatory to have each child vaccinated against mumps and …show more content…

This indicates that if people fail to get their children vaccinated, they are increasing the risk of the disease not only to their children but the general society, which is against the utilitarian rule. There is also a high chance of the unvaccinated person to get measles and infect infants, whose immunity is not strong enough, and the results can be fatal. However, when most of the people are vaccinated, even the few who might not be vaccinated will benefit from the herd immunity. Therefore, when one is vaccinated, he or she does not only prevent him or herself from being infected by the diseases but also protecting the whole society from the disease. This implies that parents should have their children vaccinated for the greater good of the