Aaron Swartz Rhetorical Analysis

Jarrell Yves L. Chua CSETHICS
Aaron Swartz’s political advocacy was about the freedom of information to the public. He wanted to give the people the free access to academic journals, federal court documents, government issues, etc. He didn’t like the idea of having to pay for information or knowledge that a person should learn or know. I think that his main concern were the marginalized sectors, wherein they don’t have free access to knowledge, news, and other important documents. As a college student, I definitely agree with his political advocacy because a lot of people will benefit from it. A lot of college students these days need academic journals for their research papers, thesis, and other school requirements. However, because most college

All of them were able to apply and relate to the ethical theories. The ethical theory that was applied and used by the owners of the companies, institutions, etc. that were affected by Aaron Swartz’s actions was the deontological theory. They insisted that even though Aaron had a good purpose for his actions, the cost or consequence was simply too much for the purpose to be able to outweigh it. Aaron’s actions was considered too much in a sense that he downloaded files, documents, etc. that was not his and he did it without consent. This action was considered a crime and therefore was filed against him. The virtue theory was also applied in this case, because by principle, what Aaron did was morally wrong. He had stolen files that were not his, and most of all, he did it without the owner’s consent. Even though he was unaware of his actions being considered as stealing, what he did was still morally wrong. On the other side, the supporters of Aaron used the utilitarian theory. They did not care much as to what they were violating or what can be or will be violated, because they believe that their purpose and output is justifiable. In my opinion, I believe that the best ethical theory to be applied in this kind of situation is the social contract theory, simply because it stops conflict. A case like this, the freedom of information, can be made possible and acceptable if