This was written before June, as a means to study for my Philosophy exam,
therefore there are *NO Spoilers for the Order of the Phoenix.* (There are
of course spoilers for the first four books though)
=Disclaimers: Dumbledor, Harry and anything else mentioned in relation to the Harry Potter Universe does not belong to me, it belongs to the fabulous J.K.Rowling. The philosophies don't belong to me either. The Kantian philosophy was developed by Emmanuel Kant, German philosopher of the 18th century.Utilitarianism was developed by Jeremy Bentham and J.S. Mill.
Finally, I learnt philosophy in French, so if any of my terminology is wrong, please let me know. Thanks.
**Dumbledor's Dilemma**
Dumbledor sighed. He sat ensconced in his favorite chair. He'd received no owls today, no fireplace calls. At this point no news was good news, So why was he frowning?
The fact is that a problem he had been (successfully) avoiding thinking about had blind- sided him as he had sat down, ready to enjoy his tea and crumpets.
Soon Harry would have to face off with Voldemort yet again. And that worried Dumbledor. The boy was young still. True, he'd been even younger all the other times. But that was no consolation. In fact, it seemed to make it worse. It? The ethical problem which had blind- sided the venerable headmaster: "Was it ethical to sacrifice Harry for the good of the wizarding community?"
Dumbledor was quite fond of all his students, but Harry in particular he thought of as a grandson. Dumbledor knew that sentiments clouded rational judgment, so with a sigh he tried to look at the problem in a purely objective way. He identified the two sides of the argument, the one Kantian, the other Utilitarian, and set about debating with himself.
Kant got to go first, because Dumbledor couldn't suppress entirely the feelings which reacted with a strong NO! to the idea of sacrificing Harry. Kant's theory is based on the idea that all humans deserve an equal moral respect because they are all free and rational beings. Their moral dignity is based on the fact that they can choose the moral action. The part of Kant's theory which is applicable to Dumbledor's problem is Kant's principal of respect for the human person. In its simplest form, this categorical imperative entreats us to treat others only as an end, never as a means. This signifies that we must always respect their rights as fellow human beings, and never use them only for our own benefit, in disregard of their moral rights. If Dumbledor sent Harry to fight Voldemort, he was using him as a means to an end- as a tool to bring about peace for the wizarding community. Using a fellow human as a tool, as an object, is morally wrong according to Kant's theory of ethics. It would thus be completely immoral for Dumbledor to sacrifice Harry for the greater good, to send him out as a tool to fight Voldemort.
Sighing, Dumbledor turned to Utilitarianism for help. Their theory is founded on the principal that the action which causes the greatest amount of happiness for the largest number of people is the morally best action. The Utilitarian philosophers had developed a complicated calculation of the utility of an action, based on how much pain and how much happiness would result from the action. In the situation which Dumbledor was considering, it was obvious that the most happiness would come from Voldemort's death. As each individual's happiness and pain only counted for one in the Utilitarian calculation, the pain Harry might receive in fighting Voldemort, and the pain felt by his friends after his lost would be greatly outweighed by the happiness of the rest (and vast majority) of the wizarding world. The Utilitarian philosophy was thus indicating that sacrificing Harry for the greater good was a morally acceptable thing to do, and in fact the only right action in the situation.
Dumbledor sighed again. He had known at the outset what the two theories would tell him. It was rare that they agreed, but he wished that in this case they had made him feel more comfortable with his impending decision.
------------
This is not a call for reviews, however, I don't suppose that there is great demand for philosophy in the realm of fanfic. If you are interested in reading another such composition, please let me know, as I did write a few more while I was studying.
=Disclaimers: Dumbledor, Harry and anything else mentioned in relation to the Harry Potter Universe does not belong to me, it belongs to the fabulous J.K.Rowling. The philosophies don't belong to me either. The Kantian philosophy was developed by Emmanuel Kant, German philosopher of the 18th century.Utilitarianism was developed by Jeremy Bentham and J.S. Mill.
Finally, I learnt philosophy in French, so if any of my terminology is wrong, please let me know. Thanks.
**Dumbledor's Dilemma**
Dumbledor sighed. He sat ensconced in his favorite chair. He'd received no owls today, no fireplace calls. At this point no news was good news, So why was he frowning?
The fact is that a problem he had been (successfully) avoiding thinking about had blind- sided him as he had sat down, ready to enjoy his tea and crumpets.
Soon Harry would have to face off with Voldemort yet again. And that worried Dumbledor. The boy was young still. True, he'd been even younger all the other times. But that was no consolation. In fact, it seemed to make it worse. It? The ethical problem which had blind- sided the venerable headmaster: "Was it ethical to sacrifice Harry for the good of the wizarding community?"
Dumbledor was quite fond of all his students, but Harry in particular he thought of as a grandson. Dumbledor knew that sentiments clouded rational judgment, so with a sigh he tried to look at the problem in a purely objective way. He identified the two sides of the argument, the one Kantian, the other Utilitarian, and set about debating with himself.
Kant got to go first, because Dumbledor couldn't suppress entirely the feelings which reacted with a strong NO! to the idea of sacrificing Harry. Kant's theory is based on the idea that all humans deserve an equal moral respect because they are all free and rational beings. Their moral dignity is based on the fact that they can choose the moral action. The part of Kant's theory which is applicable to Dumbledor's problem is Kant's principal of respect for the human person. In its simplest form, this categorical imperative entreats us to treat others only as an end, never as a means. This signifies that we must always respect their rights as fellow human beings, and never use them only for our own benefit, in disregard of their moral rights. If Dumbledor sent Harry to fight Voldemort, he was using him as a means to an end- as a tool to bring about peace for the wizarding community. Using a fellow human as a tool, as an object, is morally wrong according to Kant's theory of ethics. It would thus be completely immoral for Dumbledor to sacrifice Harry for the greater good, to send him out as a tool to fight Voldemort.
Sighing, Dumbledor turned to Utilitarianism for help. Their theory is founded on the principal that the action which causes the greatest amount of happiness for the largest number of people is the morally best action. The Utilitarian philosophers had developed a complicated calculation of the utility of an action, based on how much pain and how much happiness would result from the action. In the situation which Dumbledor was considering, it was obvious that the most happiness would come from Voldemort's death. As each individual's happiness and pain only counted for one in the Utilitarian calculation, the pain Harry might receive in fighting Voldemort, and the pain felt by his friends after his lost would be greatly outweighed by the happiness of the rest (and vast majority) of the wizarding world. The Utilitarian philosophy was thus indicating that sacrificing Harry for the greater good was a morally acceptable thing to do, and in fact the only right action in the situation.
Dumbledor sighed again. He had known at the outset what the two theories would tell him. It was rare that they agreed, but he wished that in this case they had made him feel more comfortable with his impending decision.
------------
This is not a call for reviews, however, I don't suppose that there is great demand for philosophy in the realm of fanfic. If you are interested in reading another such composition, please let me know, as I did write a few more while I was studying.