ipl-logo

Similarities Between Kant And John Stuart Mill

863 Words4 Pages

Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill have held a very important position as far as morality and ethics are concerned. This paper analyzes the moral justification of firing my bazooka at combat at the veering danger of an enemy tanker amid six civilians being tucked on the ambient outside. The moral thing here would be firing at the enemy. The decision I arrive after analyzing it according to Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill.
Kant is remembered in ethics for his deontological ethical theory where he states that an action is morally justifiable if an actor is bound by his obedience to act by a set of laws. Kant’s ethics thus states that one “must” always conform to a set of rules hence at other times called “categorical imperative.” According …show more content…

If I do not fire the enemy, then the tanker is likely to get hold of me and harm me. Probably, they will shoot at me. If I fire, all the six civilians are likely to die and this is not any likely to stop the enemy tanker. Now what does Kant and Stuart Mill has to say about the moral thing at the moment? According to deontological ethics of Kant, the rule is that I am not supposed to kill innocent lives. So here, I should shoulder my weaponry and leave the enemy tanker. On the other hand, Mill would advise that I should fire as firing is what will save many lives and result in the maximum good for the people involved. This is an enemy and I am a combat soldier. I am trained to save lives. By firing, I will first save my life and save the lives of many other people who stand the danger of being harmed by the enemy. So, firing my bazooka results to a maximum good to my society as opposed to failing to fire as Kant advises. Kant’s deontological ethics raises a lot of questions; According to him, a rule is a rule and should always apply to all people at all the times. Categorical imperative proves itself very challenging. Now that killing is bad, is it bad to kill an enemy at war? Is it bad to kill an enemy and save the lives of even many people in the future? Categorical imperative claims to observe morality by observing laws at all the times always. However, at the situation at hand, it’s very intentions causes its flaw; Killing is bad but killing an enemy despite harming civilians is justifiable as long as at the end of the day, more people will be saved and be

Show More
Related

  • Staff Sargent Jimmy Stewart Essay

    409 Words  | 2 Pages

    Stewart elected to hold his ground to protect his fallen comrades and prevent an enemy penetration of the company perimeter. As the full force of the platoon-sized man attack struck his lone position, he fought like a man possessed; emptying magazine after magazine at the determined, on-charging enemy. The enemy drove almost to his position and hurled grenades, but S/Sgt. Stewart decimated them by retrieving and throwing the grenades back. Exhausting his ammunition, he crawled under intense fire to his wounded team members and collected ammunition that they were unable to use.

    Read More

  • Essay On My Brother Sam Is Dead

    910 Words  | 4 Pages

    Some people still wonder if war can be justified by its principles or cause. It can be argued that war can be justified due to the principles of freedom and justice that soldiers are willing to die for. However, many argue against this saying that war should be avoided at all costs due to collateral damage and the massive loss of innocent life. In the book My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier, Tim faces the biggest dilemma of his life when he has to decide whether to side with his brother who believes in the principles of war or his father who believes war should be avoided at all costs. When the novel comes to a conclusion, Tim decides that he is neutral and does not agree to either argument due to the irony contained within the deaths of

    Read More

  • Key Events That Led Up To The American Revolution

    872 Words  | 4 Pages

    They began to shout at the soldiers, daring them to fire. Captain Preston then arrived and tried to get the crowd to disperse. Unfortunately, an object thrown from the crowd struck one of the soldiers, Private Montgomery, and knocked him down. He fired into the crowd. After a few seconds of stunned silence, a number of other soldiers fired into the crowd as well.

    Read More

  • Pathos In How To Tell A True War Story By Tim O Brien

    1782 Words  | 8 Pages

    O’brien does not give any explanation as to why he does this, but he tells us that this “wasn’t to kill: just to heart” (o’brien 75). His point in sharing this scene with the reader is to show truly what war does to a person. A normal person in their right mind would not just walk up and shoot a defenseless baby animal. When the reader learns about this event, their ethics are immediately called into question. Is this right?

    Read More

  • Comparing Kant's Categorical Imperative And John Stuart Mill

    507 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kant also thought it was possible for pure reason to discover objective ethical truths. Kant believed that ethical truths must be categorical, universal, and be the product of reason. Kant’s categorical imperative states that a person should always act in such a way that they could will that act should be a universal law. This means that Kant thought that it was best to do the right thing, even if the person didn’t want to. This view of ethics focuses on what is right to do.

    Read More

  • Comparing Mill And Kant's Theories

    714 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mill and Kant have opposite idea and they support different moral philosophies. Mill exactly suppose the idea of social thinking, namely he claims that everyone attach an importance to other human beings. However, Kant considers that selfishness reflect people’s characteristics, in other words, each person should pay attention to themselves not others, because the most important thing for them is themselves. Kant also highlight that people can only behave in a good manner, if they have good will. In other words, Kant attach an importance to people’s instinct or characteristics, Mill gives weight to promoting happiness and dissolution of the pain.

    Read More

  • Symbolism Of Parrots In Captain Yossarian's Catch-22

    1934 Words  | 8 Pages

    Is it reasonable to die for a colonel? Just by the question alone, the obvious answer is no; however, if others are fighting then one would typically fight along even if the goal is flawed. Conformity is dangerous. When a situation is given, approximately one-third of people conform (McLeod). Throughout the novel, Heller uses Milo, Hungry Joe, and other minor characters to prove how they conform, or absentmindedly follow the officer’s orders, and not carry the same stigma that Yossarian carries--even though their deeds are more

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Just Lather That's All

    701 Words  | 3 Pages

    The protagonist from “The Sniper” would in fact kill his enemy if he is the chance as we learn in the story. The Republican Sniper was on the rooftop and he lit up a cigarette, as he did that the light made his location visible and a bullet rushed towards him. Since he was shot, he was quickly running out of options. Due to the fact that the enemy thought

    Read More

  • Kant And Mill Similarities

    1385 Words  | 6 Pages

    Immanuel Kant and John Samuel Mill have various similarities and differences on how we see the world. Where both will have, different ideologies referring to the cases of rescue I and rescue II. Kant and Mill are similar in multiple ways where both recognize the moral rules where Kant calls them duties and Mill calls them subordinate principles. Both have the subordinate principles where not to lie, no to stealing, and deprive from liberty from others. Appealing the consequences of the derived duties, where Kant considers the consequence of Maxim to become a universal law of nature, Mill considers the consequence of kind action.

    Read More

  • Impression And Violence In 'The Sniper'

    506 Words  | 3 Pages

    “The sniper look at his enemy falling, underline and shuttered. The lust of battle died in him.” This is the end result when violence and assumption overcome us: we react in the right away. From the short story, “The Sniper”, we learn that assumption and violence can cause us to act in regrettable ways. The enemy sniper kills innocent people, the sniper fakes his death, and kills the enemy sniper.

    Read More

  • Immanuel Kant's Theory Of The Death Penalty

    706 Words  | 3 Pages

    Even though it is true that taking the life of another is not right, it is even truer that the punishment should fit the crime. The death penalty is an exercise of justice that promotes retribution for crime and moral punishment for those who choose to take human life. Also, it prevents society 's worse offenders from re-offending, and it provides justice for the victims whose lives were cut short without a second thought. To better understand why capital punishment is a justifiable act, Kant 's theory gives a clear and logical understanding of the eye for an eye approach. Additionally the utilitarian view also explains why capital punishment is justifiable in regards to comfort for the victim 's family and prevention of re-offending.

    Read More

  • The Sniper Theme Essay

    518 Words  | 3 Pages

    If you knew who you were shooting at, would you pull the trigger? In the story called ¨The Sniper¨ by Liam O'Flaherty, a man, who is referred to as ´the sniper´ is about a man who is in a war in Dublin. The first thing that happens is when he shoots a man in a turret and a woman. Then he gets shot in the arm. Then he shoots an enemy sniper.

    Read More

  • Essay On Divine Command Theory

    1218 Words  | 5 Pages

    The divine command theory, utilitarianism, Kant’s duty defined morality, natural law theory, and Aristotle’s virtue ethics are the five types of ethical theories. The divine command theory states that what is morally right and wrong will be decided by God. Utilitarianism states that “Action “A” is morally right if and only if it produces the greatest amount of overall happiness. Kant’s duty defined morality states that what is important is acting for the sake of producing good consequences, no matter what the act is. Natural law theory states that people should focus on the good and avoid any evil.

    Read More

  • Paintball Narrative Essay

    685 Words  | 3 Pages

    My paintball gun was half full. I debate between going back or staying here. I was about to go back, but then, the enemy held a counter attack, running at us, shooting us with with full speed. I decide to fire the rest of my ammo at them, and hit one of them in the arm. They grab their arm and start running back.

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Kant's Categorical Imperative

    1222 Words  | 5 Pages

    I hope to convince the reader that Kant’s Categorical Imperative is the better way to live a morally conscious life and more practical to follow as well. First I will briefly describe both Kant’s and Mill’s principles. Then I will go on to explain the advantages and disadvantages of both. Finally, I hope to provide a counterargument for some of Kant’s Categorical Imperatives downfalls. Kant states the Categorical Imperative as: "Act as if the maxim of your action were to become through your will and general natural law."

    Read More

More about Similarities Between Kant And John Stuart Mill

Open Document