• Home Page
  • The Ethical Dilemmas Of Peter Singer

The Ethical Dilemmas Of Peter Singer

Improved Essays
Show More
Peter Singer is a philosopher who is well known for his resolves on humanitarian aid. He is distinguished for his commitment to certain ethics that spark conflicts between our rational mind and intuition. Peter Singer’s approaches in various ethical debates helps in drawing a line through the formerly grey areas in many academic discussions. Singer explains his arguments and morals in ways that are persuasive and rational; however on occasion Singer’s resolutions are counterintuitive – but often nonetheless true – and confronting.
The following essay has been designed in order to defend Peter Singer’s opinions which claim that we, provided we fit the representation of comfortable circumstances, have an ethical responsibility to aid those who

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Philosophers Jan Narveson And Peter Singer: Moral Responsibility And Duty
    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Philosophers Jan Narveson And Peter Singer: Moral Responsibility And Duty

    What duty do we have to help those who might otherwise starve without our intervention? Is it our responsibility to help our fellow man in need or are we free to stand on the sidelines? Philosophers Jan Narveson and Peter Singer offer contrasting viewpoints on the moral obligations affluent nations have to aid and support the poor. Where Singer reasons that by having the privilege of living in nations of wealth, this benefit carries with it the moral obligation to help those around the world who are sentenced to live in absolute poverty, if only because of where fate had them born. In response, Narveson argues Singer is mistaken: our responsibility and duty first lies to our circle and we should never insist that others take the responsibility…

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Decent Essays

    Peter Singer's Moral Dilemmas: An Analysis
    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Peter Singer's Moral Dilemmas: An Analysis

    The moral dilemma shown here, is the same one that Singer believes occurs every time an American who already owns a TV chooses to go out and buy a new one. Instead of using this excess money to upgrade their television, they should be donating it to prevent the deaths of kids in need. Even though these two decision both have different factors to them, they both could lead to the same result. Except, in one scenario a kid dies by being sold to an organ peddler, and in the other a child dies of hunger on the street.…

    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Peter Singer's Argument Analysis
    • 664 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Peter Singer's Argument Analysis

    There are many protestations to Singer’s opinion that; we have moral obligations to contribute for the prevention of poverty. Such efforts to deny our moral obligation to the world’s poor originate from various ethical positions. Two of such objections are as follows: The first objection has consequential logic, however its conclusion is different. It states that by preventing poverty now, it may lead to more suffering in the future, so we should implement a triage policy - providing help according to the urgency of need of care - in order to lessen the usage of resources which inevitably will be need in the future (Campbell et al,…

    • 664 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Analysis Of Famine, Affluence And Morality By Peter Singer
    • 1246 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Analysis Of Famine, Affluence And Morality By Peter Singer

    In this section I will outline Singer’s argument. Singer’s first premise states that any suffering stemming from poverty is morally wrong. This suffering can include suffering from not enough food, poor living conditions, or a lack of proper medical care. His second premise describes that it is our moral…

    • 1246 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    John Stuart Mill's 'Utilitarianism'
    • 1497 Words
    • 6 Pages

    John Stuart Mill's 'Utilitarianism'

    Singer sets the stage for his argument by his first premise, which he believes most would agree too, that human suffering and death due to a deficiency of food, shelter, and medical aide are bad (231). Secondly, he states that if it is in one’s power to prevent something bad from happening, without having to sacrifice anything of equal moral importance, we morally ought to do it. He implies that…

    • 1497 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Of Peter Singer's Famine, Affluence And Morality, And Lifeboat Ethics
    • 1468 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Of Peter Singer's Famine, Affluence And Morality, And Lifeboat Ethics

    (Intro) Peter Singer’s “Famine, Affluence, and Morality” and Garrett Hardin’s “Lifeboat ethics” are contradictory philosophical works that examine whether scarce resources should be shared with the poor. Singer’s argument is that “suffering and death from lack of food, shelter and medical care are bad" (Singer, 1972); therefore all people become morally obligated to help the poor. While Hardin argues that ethics of a Lifeboat should be followed because there is a finite amount of resources available at our disposal (Hardin, 1974, pp.566). Both authors take extreme positions by providing opposing arguments on whether we should be involved in helping the famine or not. This essay will analyze the rational of both authors’ while trying…

    • 1468 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Zell Kravinsky's The Gift: Should We Are Moral People?
    • 1409 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Zell Kravinsky's The Gift: Should We Are Moral People?

    In life we are faced with a series of “big questions”. These questions answer whether we are decently moral people. The ‘big question” we are going to tackle is ‘are we under an obligation to save lives?’ If so, what is required of us to be a morally decent person? In “The Gift” by Parker we learn that Zell Kravinsky would take a utilitarian approach to this question.…

    • 1409 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Analysis Of Famine, Affluence, And Morality By Peter Singer
    • 1478 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Analysis Of Famine, Affluence, And Morality By Peter Singer

    In “Famine, Affluence, and Morality,” Peter Singer discusses the moral obligation of humans to prevent bad things from happening. In particular, Singer focuses on the prevention of the famine in East Bengal during November 1971 where many people were dying from poverty. Singer argues that since global poverty may be inhibited through charitable donations, then individual people ought to be morally obligated to donate what Singer defines as their surplus of money to charities that will aid impoverished nations. Singer writes his article in the format of a thought experiment, in which he presents a number of generally agreeable premises that lead up to his conclusion which is to donate as much money to charity as what Singer determines is reasonable.…

    • 1478 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Analysis Of Famine Affluence And Morality
    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Analysis Of Famine Affluence And Morality

    Therefore, consequently utilitarianism does not support not giving to famine relief, validating Singer’s claim that giving to alleviate famine is a moral…

    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Peter Singer Analysis
    • 1509 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Peter Singer Analysis

    Bogging down the argument in the selfish aspects of the individual, who at most if they do work to combat global suffering is minimally affected detracts from the severity of the problem that is being addressed. What is important is the suffering the absolute poor face, and if the justification to help them is not helping them is murder, then what justification would exist? Singer’s justification still is not enough to truly compel most people into acting, and if the possibility of being a murderer is not enough then no other justification would be either, and any other would be even less compelling. Hence, it is better to assume Peter’s assertion is the case and convince more people to act. Or on a micro-level, is it not better to take Singer at face value and save lives, or at worst Singer be wrong and have still saved…

    • 1509 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Analysis Of Lifeboat Ethics: The Case Against Helping The Poor
    • 817 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Analysis Of Lifeboat Ethics: The Case Against Helping The Poor

    Singer argues that if we could save the kid from drowning with little inconvenience, it would be wrong not to save the child. Singer believes this situation is like giving to the poor. Singer states that “if for the cost of a pair of shoes we can contribute to a health program in a developing country that stands a good chance of saving the life of a child, we ought to do so” (Singer 7). If everybody gave a small amount, we would be able to help support developing programs to help poor countries. Singer drowning child argument and Hardin lifeboat argument have overlaps.…

    • 817 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Ethics And Globalization In Peter Singer's One World
    • 1785 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Ethics And Globalization In Peter Singer's One World

    Peter Singer is on of the world’s most influential philosophers. Peter Singer’s book, One World, is about the ethics of the world and globalization. Throughout the book, Singer brings up different examples of what is going on in the world, and what we are doing wrong. For instance, there was more funding for 9/11 victims over funding for poor families across the world. There are four dilemmas Singer talks about in his book, and the ethical solutions to these dilemmas.…

    • 1785 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    The Peter Singer Argument
    • 1206 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Peter Singer Argument

    The underlying goal of philosophy is to help humans seek the ultimate truth to the questions that orbit their knowledge for the meaning of existence. One question that many philosophers are challenging themselves to answer would be that of just how far individuals should go in order to provide relief for those who are suffering from poverty. After attaining a degree in bioethics, a professor by the name of Peter Singer recently ventured to provide the world with an answer to the question that had been protruding the minds of many philosophers. Singer claims, “The formula is simple: whatever money you’re spending on luxuries, not necessities, should be given away.” Although Singer’s argument proposes an idea that could be beneficial towards…

    • 1206 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Peter Singer The Solution To World Poverty Analysis
    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Peter Singer The Solution To World Poverty Analysis

    Singer’s use of moral reasoning and logic in his hypothetical examples of Dora and Bob, along with his breakdown of what an American family needs to make in order to take care of their needs, was able to convince me of this position. We only need a certain amount of resources to survive ourselves, so whatever extra we have should be given to help save others in…

    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Ethics And Intuitions By Peter Singer
    • 1173 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Ethics And Intuitions By Peter Singer

    In his 2005 paper “Ethics and Intuitions,” Peter Singer seeks to find a new role for intuitions in moral theorizing in light of studies by Jonathan Haidt and Joshua Greene, which seem to cast doubt on the reliability of moral intuitions. These studies suggest that much of our moral reasoning is less based in rationalizing and more based in instinctual “gut” reactions, and that these instincts can be explained in terms of their evolutionary history. Further, Greene in particular demonstrates that these moral instincts can be manipulated in order to give contradicting reports, suggesting that moral intuitions are unreliable. Singer, noting how moral theorists have thus far been unable to give an account of morality without relying on moral intuitions,…

    • 1173 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More

Related Topics

Ready To Get Started?
Discover
Company
Follow
©2024 Cram.com
Privacy Policy |  About Ads |  Site Map |  Advertise  | 
  • Cookie Settings