Final answer:
Ethical dilemmas arise when we face conflicting moral obligations and must decide which action leads to the greatest good or fulfills our most pressing duty. Utilitarianism suggests choosing for the greater happiness, while Ross's theory emphasizes prima facie duties and the context of competing duties.
Step-by-step explanation:
Ethical dilemmas occur when a person is faced with a situation in which there is a conflict between two or more competing moral obligations or responsibilities. In such situations, deciding the right course of action can be challenging, especially when each option has significant moral implications. A common approach to these dilemmas is to consider the outcomes of the different choices and decide which outcome will result in the greatest overall good. This approach is known as utilitarianism, which was famously articulated by philosophers such as John Stuart Mill. Utilitarianism posits that the most ethical action is the one that produces the greatest overall happiness or the least amount of suffering.
Sir William David Ross, on the other hand, believed that life's moral complexities cannot be reduced to a single ethical principle. He introduced the idea of prima facie duties, which are duties that are binding unless they conflict with an equal or stronger duty. In cases of competing duties, Ross suggests that our actual duty is the one that stands out as most pressing in the given situation, emphasizing the need to weigh different rules and potentially overriding concerns, like preventing harm to others, over strict rule adherence.
In practice, when you encounter an ethical dilemma—for example, deciding to lie or tell the truth when asked about a parent's criminal activity—different philosophical views offer varied guidance. The scenario with the trolley problem, the child in the pond, and the hypothetical in the hospital also illustrate situations where moral reasoning can be tested. Weighing which actions are obligatory, permissible, or forbidden requires consideration of the specific circumstances, potential consequences, and which moral principles apply.
Ultimately, in everyday life and in more complex scenarios, we are frequently tasked with assessing and acting upon the moral dimensions of our choices, which falls under the field of applied ethics. Therefore, understanding the balance between various ethical theories and principles is essential when grappling with real-world moral dilemmas.