Jim and the Indians

Case Response: Jim and the Indians
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The Utilitarian theory dictates that an act is right when it promotes happiness and wrong if it yields the reverse of happiness. Hence, utilitarianism focuses on outcomes or consequences of an act. For instance, an action is deemed ethical when it produces the greatest good for many people. In this case, Jim would be compelled to kill one Indian to appease the majority. The consequence of killing one is of great value than letting all the Indians in custody to be killed. Despite this act contradicting with Jim’s integrity, the majority have the say. Moreover, it is possible for a bad motive to influence the act of utilitarianism to be the right thing. Hence, it needs one to be selfless in behavior as people’s opinions matter more than that of an individual.
Conversely, Kantian ethics state that the wrongness or rightness of an act lies not on the consequences but the duty the act is fulfilling. According to this deontological moral theory, there exists a supreme principle that governs morality known as the Categorical Imperative (CI). The theory also bases an act on the overall principle of people’s rational behaviors if exposed to similar circumstances. Therefore, Kantian would recommend Jim to kill one Indian to crown the special occasion which would pardon the other Indians from death. The other villagers would also kill one of the Indians if given Jim’s opportunity thus, Jim has to act as per the rational expectations of the people around him.
Contrary to Kantian ...