Are genuine ethical dilemmas real, or just failures of our own moral imagination?
In short: An ethical dilemma occurs when you face conflicting moral obligations where no choice is clearly superior. While we often feel trapped by these situations, philosophers debate whether they are truly unresolvable or if we simply lack the information or the right moral framework to see the correct path forward.
In strict philosophical terms, a genuine ethical dilemma—or ontological dilemma—arises when an agent faces two or more conflicting moral requirements that carry equal weight. Because the agent cannot perform both actions, they must choose one, yet no sufficient reason exists to prioritize one over the other. This definition excludes situations that are merely psychologically difficult or resolvable, such as a businessman choosing between a meeting and saving a drowning child; in that case, the moral imperative to save a life clearly outweighs professional duty.
The debate over whether these dilemmas exist is fierce. Traditionalists argue that a sound moral theory must be free of such conflicts, providing clear guidance in every situation. They often point to the 'agglomeration principle'—if you ought to do two things, you ought to do both—and the principle that 'ought implies can.' If you are truly obligated to do both, you must be able to do both, which would negate the conflict. Conversely, defenders of ethical dilemmas argue that our intuition, shaped by examples like Sartre’s student choosing between his mother and his country, or the tragic choice in William Styron’s 'Sophie’s Choice,' proves that some conflicts are fundamentally unresolvable.
Critics often attempt to reclassify these as 'epistemic dilemmas,' suggesting that the conflict only seems unresolvable because the agent lacks sufficient information. If the agent knew more, they argue, the correct choice would become clear. However, defenders counter with the 'argument from moral residue.' They note that even after making a choice in a dilemma, agents often feel appropriate, lingering guilt or remorse. If there were a 'correct' choice, this residue might not be the appropriate response, suggesting that the agent has indeed failed to fulfill a moral obligation regardless of their decision.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Ethical dilemma
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