Assessing Situation Ethics

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strength and weaknesses of situation ethics

Advantages

  • Situation ethics is right that legalistic approaches to ethics brings an inflexibility to situations. These are occasions when to apply rules would be unfair. Situationism brings a much needed flexibility that takes circumstances into account.
  • It enables use to answer ifficult moral dilemmas where we may have two conflicting duties, for example, choosing between telling the truth and saving a life, by giving us one principle to follow.
  • Agape love is a good principle. The demand that we do whatever is most loving dor those around us whether we like them or not saves use from personal bias.

Disadvantages

  • In suggesting that 'never' and 'always' are to be avoided, the theory has no clear and absolute boundaries. This means that child torture could be permitted in a hypothetical extreme case where a more loving outcome could be obtained; For example, a terrorists child and this will cause them to disclose where the bomb is placed.
  • The concept of Agape and how we may apply it is vague. What each of us sees as most loving may be a matter of personal opinion.
  • Mcquarrie suggests that because situation ethics is quite individualistic and involves individuals deciding based on the specific circumstances that they face, it is difficult to see how this could be applied across a society.
  • It is difficult when to know where a situation begins and where a situation ends. We may resolve the immediate situation but this may set off an chain of unexpected consequences that do not lead to a loving outcome.
  • Some thinkers have argued that in relaity situation ethics is no different to Ultitarianism. This may not be a disadvantage depending on what you wish to argue.

Evaluation

Situation ethics is seen by its founder, Joseph Fletcher, as a middle position between legalism, the excessive reliance on laws such as seen in the Pharisees, and antinomianism, the belief that no rules at all are required. Fletcher argued that the on principle needed was Agape love, an unconditional Christian love. In all moral dilemmas, our one principle should be that we do that which leads to the most loving outcome.

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