Principle of double effect

However, we mustn't forget the principle of double effect. It is wrong to kill, but is it wrong to give someone pain relief if a secondary effect is that they die? Once someone accept that death is merely a by-product of another action, he is asking a very different question. Asking 'Is death a proportionate outcome?' This brings in a utilitarian type of consideration, which we would not expect from Natural Law. In other words, while Natural Law clearly doesn't support active euthanasia, it may well allow an action whose intention is merely to relieve pain, even if the action leads to death. There are natural law thinkers who find the doctrine of double effect difficult to reconcile with Natural Law thinking. Situation Ethics is easy to apply…

distinction between physician aid in dying and the doctrine of double effect. Through defining these two terms and analyzing medical cases where killing a patient is morally permissible, I argue that there is no moral distinction between physician aid in dying and the doctrine of double effect. Originating from “Thomas Aquinas’…discussion of the permissibility of self-defense in the…

Philosophy 1C Dr. Cole An Analysis on Reflective Equilibrium and the Doctrine of Double Effect The study of ethics in philosophy is the branch of philosophy that is concerned about studying the thoughts of what is considered morally good and what is morally evil, what is morally right and wrong, and what is our moral duty or obligation. For this paper I will begin by briefly explaining the method of reflective equilibrium as it is used in ethics. Then I will explain the Doctrine of Double…

the principles of forfeiture and double effect found within the Natural Law Theory. In general, Natural Law is derived from seemingly unchangeable moral principles found in nature through the use of logical reasoning. As a result, Natural Law only creates vague but strict guidelines as to how a human should behave. Criteria: Delving in the specific criteria that we shall be using to judge whether the chosen actions are either allowed or not allowed, the principle of forfeiture states: - If you…

often use them to display a relationship, they cannot be used to prove a cause-and-effect relationship. The only research design that allows researchers to infer causation is experimental designs. Therefore, in order to prove (or disprove) a causal relationship between vitamins and crime rates, an experiment must be designed. One of the key principles in statistics is “correlation does not equal causation.” Any two independent variables could happen to be correlated, but that does not show a…

a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy.” People often find conflicting arguments for or against this difficult subject because of the various reasons a woman might request the procedure to be done (i.e. medical, personal or religious reasons). In the argument for abortion, our group focused on several points. Our first reason was that women deserve to have control over their own bodies. We supported this with Principlism (focusing on autonomy) and…

Research question: To what extent is the maths behind the double pendulum correct and what are its limitations due to chaos theory. Chaos theory is the idea, in simple terms, that certain natural events and occurrences are unpredictable in their behaviour. Examples of this are: weather, turbulent flow in certain liquids and even the double pendulum. These things can be explored and determined mathematically just how unpredictable they are and under what conditions they may become predictable,…

First, the maxim is: those who seek to take civilian lives should be killed. Conceivably, this maxim could be willed to be a Universal Law. If innocent life is truly valued, it ought to be protected. Next, human beings are not used as a means. The person firing the rocket is doing his job, along with the Israeli Army, who are seeking to eliminate the terrorist organizations. Finally, the community protected by the Israeli Army can agree that it is morally right to kill those who wish to take…

Queensland Double Jeopardy Provisions Double Jeopardy is a technicality law based upon the assumption that one cannot be repeatedly prosecuted in a criminal trial by either the jury, judge or appeal of court judges ("Questioning Double Jeopardy", 2016). This notion has been in existence for 800 years and originated from English Common Law. The double jeopardy protection averts three scenarios, a retrial for a crime that would attract a 25-year or more sentence if the original acquittal is…

The Double jeopardy law originated in The ancient civilizations relied on the blood dispute to provide justice when one person killed another, the relatives of a dead person had a duty to avenge death. While the blood feud manifested harsh "retributive" justice, it could, in theory, lead to an endless series of murders as each death was avenged. The Greek dramatist Aeschylus dramatized a cycle of revenge of the blood faith in the Oresteian trilogy, which ended with Greek gods deciding that an…