Some Objections to Utilitarianism Include That It (A) Would Sanction

question 11

Multiple Choice

Some objections to utilitarianism include that it (a) would sanction murder in certain cases, (b) fails to adequately respect the value of persons, and (c) makes many of our everyday pursuits and activities immoral because they fail to optimize consequences. Which of the following best summarizes the common criticism to all three objections?

• A) Utilitarians moral judgments often conflict with the pretheoretical moral judgments we make in everyday life. As a theory, utilitarianism cannot explain them and the degree to which we think our pretheoretical moral judgments are true disconfirms utilitarianism.
• B) Utilitarianism cannot account for the feeling of moral shame or regret that one might feel when performing the act that maximizes utility.
• C) Utilitarianism demands too much of people's cognitive abilities to anticipate consequences.
• D) Agents are more likely to reverse-engineer anticipated consequences to satisfy utilitarian requirements for a course of action they already favor than to actually investigate what consequences they should expect.

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Definitions:

Stroboscopic Movement

The optical illusion of perceived motion created when a series of static images are shown in rapid sequence.

Still Photos

Photographs that capture a single moment in time, particularly in contrast to moving images.

Size Constancy

A perceptual process allowing a person to perceive an object as the same size regardless of its distance from the observer.

Optical Illusions

Visual perception phenomena where the information perceived by the eye and interpreted by the brain differs from the physical reality, often leading to misinterpretation.