The document discusses utilitarianism as an ethical theory that judges actions based on their consequences, aiming to promote the greatest happiness for the most people. It highlights the theory's strengths in decision-making but also critiques its weaknesses, particularly the difficulty of predicting outcomes. Furthermore, it addresses ethical considerations in the armed forces, emphasizing the conflict between personal beliefs and the demands of military duty.

1. THEORY 1
THEORY 2
Utilitarian Theory
Monica Anspach
PHI 208: Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Stephen Krogh
December 1, 2014
Utilitarian Theory
Utilitarian theory can be described as an ethics system
through which the wrongness or rightness of an action is judged
through the consequences that the action has. The utilitarian
ethics goal has a main aim which is to ensure that the greatest
happiness level is promoted and for the highest number of
people as well. Utilitarianism ensures that all people are happy
and it also ensures that happiness is promoted thus people are
always happy. The theory can be used in many instances to
ensure that everything goes as it should be and also to ensure
that all people are fine with the decisions made. That made me
wonder; does utilitarianism promote happiness at all cost?
The core principle of the theory is the principle of the

2. greatest happiness. That is because the theory tries to maximize
the benefits thus reducing all the negativities and suffering. The
theory also has a moral foundation which is to ensure that
people get to be happy and they also get to maximize utility
with the aim of attaining happiness (Scarre, 2002). The theory
also calls for people to weigh their actions before undertaking
them. That is because that helps them to know of the
consequences that will be caused by their actions and as a result
they are able to determine which actions to take and the actions
that they have to leave out and that helps a lot since people are
able to think before doing some of the actions that might have
negative consequences to themselves and to others as well. The
theory also ensures that people should make others happy and
that is the reason why people try their best to ensure that the
others are happy no matter the cost that comes with it.
In a situation where a friend is doing something wrong in
order to benefits themselves at the cost of others, utilitarianism
can be applied. That is because I can opt to be silent or even tell
the others what my friend has been up to and the things that the
friend has been doing behind their back. Telling the others
means that I can end up losing my friend since he believes that I
should remain silent about the matter as a sign of being a loyal
friend to him. However, telling the others shows that I am going
for the right thing and it should ensure that the people get to
know of the wrong things that are happening and it also ensures
that I will help the people that are being taken advantage of and
that will ensure that my friend stops to take advantage of the
other people and it will be of great help in ensuring that all the
people are happy and the happiness of other people is not
denied by one person.
The utilitarianism has some weaknesses. One of the
weaknesses is that it calls for the people to predict the
consequences of their actions before undertaking them. That is
something that is not possible since people do not have the
ability to predict the things that will happen in future. At times,
people tend to do things with good intentions but the outcomes

3. are negative. Therefore, it shows that it is hard for people to
measure the consequences of their actions thus it is very hard
for them to determine the actions that will cause happiness and
those that will bring problems to them. The theory is, therefore,
not effective since it is hard for people to tell what will happen
in the future thus they will always have problems due to the
actions that they take yet they had good intentions while taking
the actions that they took yet they were not aware of the
problems that could result from the actions that they undertook.
In conclusion, it is evident that the theory is very
important when making good decisions. That is because the
theory ensures that people are always happy. The theory also
ensures that people tend to make the right decisions in order to
ensure that they are able to make decisions that will be of great
benefit to them and to others as well. That ensures that people
get to do things with the intention of trying to make themselves
happy and making others happy as well. However, the theory
does not completely make people happy because people are not
able to make the right decisions and also predict some of the
things that will happen due to their actions. Therefore, people
are not always able to make the right decisions since the
decisions that they make may end up causing great problems to
them thus the will not always be happy with spme of the
decisions that they make.

4. References
Beattie, F. (1885). An examination of the utilitarian theory of
morals. Brantford: J. & J. Sutherland.
Scarre, G. (2002). Utilitarianism. London: Routledge.
ARMED FORCES ETHICS 1
Ethics in the Armed Forces
Brian J. Ayres
PHI 208: Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Instructor Fabienne-Sophie Chauderlot
March 17, 2014

5. Ethics the Armed Forces
Many people believe that members of the Armed Forces do
only as they’re told, without giving the order a second thought.
While this may be true to an extent, there are certain ethical
considerations that are made before any major order is
followed. If an order is found to be “unlawful”, or
“unjustified”, it can be refused. A member of the Armed Forces
must be disciplined, mindful, and extremely attentive. The
military teaches its Soldiers, Sailors, Airman, and Marines all
about diversity, and how everyone comes from a different
background. Unfortunately, the diverse nature of the Armed
Forces can cause severe conflict amongst its members.
To be a successful member of the Armed Forces, one must
be able to make “on-the-spot” decisions, sometimes without
anyone’s assistance. Life is not, and never will be, a video
game. There is no “pause” button on life. In an active war
zone, you don’t have time to wait and analyze what your
adversary might be thinking. There are no “do overs”, and no
rewinding, in order to make a better judgment. Everything
happens extremely fast, and you need to be prepared. Hind
sight is always 20/20.
Occasionally, in the military, your ethical beliefs will
cause conflict with your everyday duty. Many high-ranking
officials will claim that they are not concerned with your
beliefs, and that they just want the job done immediately, and
they want it done their way. Should a member of the Armed
Forces be forced to participate in something that violates their

6. moral values? There are hundreds of military members that are
involved in daily conflict with others, simply because they do
not understand diversity. The military is no place for a close-
minded individual, who cannot except that not everyone needs
to be exactly like them.
The hardest part of belonging to such a large organization,
is trying to know which decision is considered “right”. If a
military member is faced with a choice between their ethical
beliefs and their duties to our country, who decides what action
they should take? Currently, American citizenship is not
required to join the Armed Forces. Many people find this to be
absolutely outrageous. They feel that a person of Afghan
descent will not fight for our country as courageously as a “red-
blooded American”. Everyone fails to realize, that unless you
are classified as a “Native American”, your relatives were, at
one point, immigrants. In my opinion, to say that it was
perfectly acceptable to be an immigrant and fight for your
country a hundred years ago, but it is no longer acceptable
today, is what’s absolutely outrageous.
In conclusion, our military members face numerous tough
decisions on a daily basis. Unless you have served, or are
serving, you can never truly say that you understand what these
brave men and women are asked to accomplish every day.
These courageous members of our Armed Forces are extremely
disciplined, attentive, mindful, and diverse in almost every way
imaginable. Even with their vast differences, these outstanding
young souls find a way to relate to each other, and defend our
country side by side.

7. References
Mosser,K. (2014) Understanding Philosophy.Bridge Point
Education San Diego, CA. Inc