Utilitarianism And Euthanasia

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A child’s right to die. To some that seems quite morbid and unethical, but to others it is an ethical thing to do. This process of euthanasia involves giving a child a chance to end their life. To qualify for this opportunity a child must be terminally ill, experiencing pain, close to death, understands the consequences of this decision, and must have parents’ and medical staff consent. With all these steps followed, some individuals are still opposed to this idea because of it being immoral. Some individuals don’t believe that a child is capable of deciding whether they want to die or not. Ethically, this raises some issues because of the chance of harm being done to the child. To some this is actually considered murder which is not ethical …show more content…
Utilitarianism involves looking out for the greatest number of people and that is considered right. Unlike some other ethical theories, utilitarianism involves considering the consequences of situations and aims to provide happiness and lessen pain. The happiness of the greater crowd outnumbers the misery of the few people that may have experience harm. Act utilitarianism explains, “Always act to promote the greatest good for the greatest number” (Teleological or Consequentialist Theories, 2015). Someone practicing act utilitarianism would advise me to think of the greater good of the people that are in this situation. Some may assume that an act utilitarian would encourage me to not take away the pain and misery of the children that are ill, but the greater number of individuals agree with this law being passed. Though a child may be lost, there will be more people who will experience happiness following this law in Belgium. This argument is common sense which is one of its strengths. It is very practical and common sensical to follow what majority think is right. It also considers the consequences of the individuals that are experiencing this situation. This argument is weak because those individuals who aren’t in the greater number, which are the people who possess different ideas of what is ethical, will be left to see children lives taken away. The act of dehumanization is quite common among the minorities and that is also considered a weakness in this

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