Consequences, duties, and virtues applied.

 

Name

Institution

Course

Instructor

Date

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summary

A very highly infectious plague has hit the villages of hill farmers and lead miners. The plague has made people migrate from the most infected areas to areas with few cases of infections to avoid being infected. The migration is even more dangerous because it is spreading the plague to most parts of London. The local minister, Mr. Mompellion, has noticed the current situation and is committed to using his position and power to do something that can bring a difference. Mr. Mompellion is always encouraging his members of the communities to quarantine themselves and stay home to help contain the disease (Brooks, 2002). Not everyone agrees with his message; therefore, he gives the church members two chances, either leave or stay and observe the safety protocols that he has put in place. The preachers are also concerned with people’s lives, and they seem motivated by the efforts to ensure the act of movement of people does not cause harm to innocent individuals. While the village is faced with the infectious plague, Mr. Mompellion thinks that the best way is to request London’s people to stay at home or wherever they are to stop the spread of the infectious diseases.

Act Consequentialism

Act consequentialism claims that an action is morally correct if the action helps maximize the good outcomes: the good is more than the bad for any possible action available for the leader. The consequentialist theory has the view that we should act to create improvements and better situations. Mr. Mompellion to request people to quarantine and stay away from is aimed at reducing the number of cases of infections and, consequently, reducing the number of deaths. His actions are morally correct because they will help to contain the diseases in London.

Immanuel Kant-Humanity formula

Kant’s formulation of humanity states that “as an end in itself, humans are required never to treat others merely as a means to an end, but always as ends in themselves” (Kant, 1949). People who treat others as a means have actions that are not morally permissible. Leaders should treat others by respecting the concept of humanity; expressing rationality. Using Kant’s humanity formula, the actions of Mr. Mompellion are not morally permissible because he treats people as a means to an end but not as an end; by requesting people to stay at home or quarantine instead of telling them to take personal responsibility.

Rose’s theory of prima facie ethics.

Rose’s theory argues that there exist moral truths that only exist in reality. However, he continues to say that something is good only if it’s perfect. Therefore, Rose uses the concept of goodness and rightness as the guiding moral qualities. According to Rose, rightness defines an act, while goodness is used to define a motive; by using the act’s non-moral properties. According to Rose’s theory, conditional duty is called prima fice duty, while unconditional duty is called actual duty. The actual duty is the duty proper, which is the leader’s moral obligation; it is the most stringent duties. Using the Rose theory of prima face, Mr. Mompellion, as a minister, has a moral responsibility of protecting his people from dying from the diseases. He takes charge by using his position to command people to stay away and quarantine to reduce fatalities.

Virtue Ethics.

Virtual ethics’ moral theory emphasizes the role of a person’s virtues and character in evaluating the rightness of an act. The nature of a person determines the morality of the actions. Doing an act that benefits self-interest or the interest of others is not enough. The action done must come from a very righteous person. Using the virtual ethical theory, Mr. Mompellion is an honest person because he tells the people the situation’s truth. He is also brave enough to address those who reject his view of people staying at home; he tells the leaders to choose between obeying the rule or leaving. Also, he is just as he applies the same power to everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Brooks, G. (2002). Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague. Penguin

Books.

Kant, I. (1949). Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals: What is Enlightenment?            and a Passage from Morals’ Metaphysics. University of Chicago Press.