PHIL 304 DISCUSSION QUESTION CHOICE #1: Jim and the Indians. Consider the following thought experiment by Bernard Williams:
Jim finds himself in the
... [Show More] central square of a small South American town. Tied up against the wall are a row of twenty Indigenous people, most terrified, a few are defiant, in front of them several armed men in uniform. A heavy man in a sweat-¬‐stained khaki shirt turns out to be the captain in charge and, after a good deal of questioning of Jim which establishes that he got there by accident while on a botanical expedition, explains that the Indians are a random group of the inhabitants who, after recent acts of protest against the government, are just about the be killed to remind other possible protestors of the advantages of not protesting. However, since Jim is an honored visitor from another land, the captain is happy to offer him a guest’s privilege of killing one of the Indigenous people himself. If Jim accepts, then as a special mark of the occasion, the other Indigenous people will be set free. Of course, if Jim refuses, then there is no special occasion, and Pedro here will do what he was about to do when Jim arrived and kill them all. Jim, with some desperate recollection of schoolboy fiction, wonders whether, if he got hold of a gun, he could hold the captain, Pedro, and the rest of the soldiers to threat, but it is quite clear from the set-¬‐up that nothing of the kind is going to work: any attempt at that sort of thing will mean that all the Indians will be killed, and himself. The men against the wall, and the other villagers, understand the situation, and are obviously begging him to accept.
Are individual rights inviolate? How do you count the general welfare of the Indigenous people? Do Jim’s moral beliefs count in this circumstance? Put yourself in Jim’s position and explain your decision with reference to both Utilitarianism and Rights Theory, as well as your own experiences and ethical judgments. Make sure to address objections to your reasoning. [Show Less]