Introduction
Consequentialism is a theory of ethics in which people should choose actions based on the expected outcomes of those behaviors. Consequentialism does not specify which virtues should be maximized, but people can choose values in a way that corresponds to what is important to them (Ivlampie, 2017). Thus, this approach does not focus on intentions, which are also significant in individuals’ lives. There are approaches to consequentialism, such as ethical egoism and utilitarianism (Ivlampie, 2017). The essay is going to examine the weaknesses and dangers of consequentialism considering egoism and utilitarianism theories.
Limitations of Ethical Egoism
Ethical egoism is not a highly popular moral philosophy because it contradicts certain basic assumptions that most people have about what ethics includes. The first weakness of ethical egoism is that the theory cannot offer a solution when a conflict-of-interest problem occurs. Many of these issues are of this type; for example, a company desires to dump waste into a river, and the people living near the river do not want it (Ivlampie, 2017). Ethical egoism advises both sides to pursue what they want actively, and it does not propose any solution or common-sense compromise. The second weakness of ethical egoism stands in opposition to the principle of ethical impartiality. The basic assumption made by many moral philosophers is that humans should not discriminate against people on arbitrary grounds, such as race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or ethnicity (Ivlampie, 2017). However, ethical egoism argues that individuals should not attempt to be impartial. Instead, they should distinguish themselves from everyone else and prioritize themselves.
Limitations of Utilitarianism
It is also relevant to highlight the fundamental weaknesses of utilitarianism. First, utilitarianism evaluates movements only by their effect and requires the utility criterion to be applied to activities (Matthews & Hicks, 2020). However, it is difficult to anticipate the consequences of an action before it occurs. Consequently, utilitarianism establishes the dependence of the moral propriety of actions, and hence the moral correctness of the individual, on predictably unreliable expectations about future events. Second, the person’s interests are inevitably lost to the common good. In utilitarianism, all moral judgments are based on the summation of the ideas of the people (Matthews & Hicks, 2020). Nevertheless, in the summation of the interests of the single person, they fail the expectations of the collective. Therefore, utilitarian morality cannot protect the interests and needs of the person when they conflict with the common good.
The Danger of Consequentialism
Both egoism and utilitarianism are founded on the assumption that something is suitable if it causes pleasure and wrong if it produces suffering. The evaluation of the committed is assessed not based on motivation but on the results of consequences. In this case, the importance of the goal is evident; any action can be justified if it produces the desired outcome (Ivlampie, 2017). However, there is a threat that the path to the goal can become extremely costly in terms of funds and resources invested, or it will be unexpected. Hence, people can lose their morals and select inappropriate tools to obtain a positive outcome that is justified for them.
Conclusion
Therefore, consequentialist approaches to ethics have the disadvantage that the desired result between people can create challenges for others. In addition, this perspective does not indicate the need to choose ethical means to achieve the desired effect. Accordingly, there are problems with conflicts of interest and focusing only on achieving specific goals. In this way, consequentialist approaches can pose a danger to followers of theories.
References
Ivlampie, V. (2017). Ethical egoism, a failure of moral theories. LUMEN Proceedings, 1, 375-384.
Matthews, G., & Hicks, C. (2020). Introduction to philosophy: Ethics. Rebus Community.