Act Utilitarian Case Study

For this assignment the class explored the topic of Utilitarianism. In utilitarianism, the concept is to maximize satisfaction in society. Utilitarianism is then broken down into two perspectives that a person can view the situation between. They are Act Utilitarianism or Rule Utilitarianism. From the perspective of an Act Utilitarian, the main focus is on the reasoning behind a person’s choices. They analyze the entire situation and determines based on their findings if a choice is morally correct. While a Rule Utilitarian support the idea of placing rules and specific guidelines to follow when making a moral decision. In the Oncofertility example, I chose to analyze this case from the perspective of an Act Utilitarian. As an Act Utilitarian, I feel that there should be guidelines put forward to maximize satisfaction for all. In this case I feel that both Evelyn’s parents and Dr. Clark should be respectful to a set of particular guidelines. For Evelyn’s parents, they should respect their daughter’s wellbeing by not only looking at her current condition as a reason not to allow her to undergo the necessary surgery that will protect her ability to …show more content…
I feel that the Act Utilitarian perspective would be better because it would require less debate and run around about the entire situation. Personally, I feel that the parents should take the doctor’s advice and allow their daughter to undergo the surgery, not only for their satisfaction, but to protect their daughter’s future. The Kantian theory will cause too much commotion and disagreement between the doctors, the parents, and possibly even Evelyn herself because it involves everyone’s opinion about right and wrong. And in high stress situations involving the people you love, your opinion will not easily be