Final answer:
Utilitarianism struggles to resolve ethical dilemmas due to difficulties in agreeing on what constitutes 'usefulness' or happiness in diverse communities and potential conflicts with moral intuitions, individual rights, or laws. Additionally, moral complexity often requires weighing multiple considerations beyond just happiness, and practical challenges in measuring happiness further complicate utilitarian applications.
Step-by-step explanation:
The application of utilitarianism does not always resolve an ethical dilemma. One of the most substantive critiques of utilitarianism is that in a diverse community, it can be difficult to find agreement on what constitutes as 'usefulness' or 'happiness'. As utilitarianism holds that the correct action is that which maximizes happiness, disagreements about what increases happiness can lead to ethical dilemmas that utilitarianism alone cannot resolve. Furthermore, utilitarianism is also challenged by situations where actions that maximize happiness may be at odds with moral intuitions, individual rights, or the law, reflecting the moral complexity that a single principle like utility can often underestimate. For example, the act of a vigilante killing to prevent further harm may increase overall happiness, yet defy the rule of law and ethical standards that respect individual rights, leaving us in a moral quandary.
Additionally, classic utilitarianism, as proposed by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, may oversimplify moral life, as it reduces morality to a single principle—maximizing happiness. Different situations often call for weighing multiple moral considerations, not just happiness. Furthermore, the practical challenges of measuring happiness and predicting the outcomes of actions add to the complexity, making utilitarianism an imperfect tool for resolving ethical dilemmas.