QUESTION ONE

Utilitarianism theory judges the rightness or wrongness of actions by the goodness or badness

the consequences bring about. It assesses the consequences in terms of their tendency to

maximize utility or welfare. A person ought to act so as to maximize pleasure and reduce pain.

Virtue ethics is a theory which focuses on the growth of righteous character. It emphasizes on the

role of character and virtue. According to Aristotle a virtuous person has absolute personal

characteristics which develops partly as a result of his upbringing and partly as a result of his

habit of action. He also argues that a person’s character is voluntary.

According to Social contract theory people live together in the community in accordance with an

agreement that establishes moral and political rules of conduct. Stuart Rachels argues that

morality is the set of rules governing the conduct that logical people accept on the condition that

other people accept them too.

Deontological ethics emphasizes on the relationship between human actions and morality. This

theory focuses on the characteristics of the action rather than the product. It holds that some acts

are morally mandatory regardless of their outcome.

In recent years, journalists have exposed the widespread use of child labor, and slavery, on cocoa

farms in Western Africa. Since then, the industry has become increasingly secretive, making it

difficult for reporters to access farms where human rights violations occur and hide this

information to the public. Cocoa farmers earn less income per day therefore resort to the use of

child labor and slavery.

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Child slavery is morally incorrect. The children of Western Africa are faced by intense poverty

forcing them to start working at a young age. Some end up on the cocoa farms because they need

work. Others are sold to traffickers or farm owners by their relatives who don’t know how

dangerous the work environment is and lack of provisions for an education. Farm owners

provide the children with cheap food and poor beddings. They are forced to work without pay.

Farm owners are responsible for the slavery that occurs in the chocolate industry, cocoa farmers

earn less than income therefore, they often resort to the use of child labor to keep their prices competitive.

If business people follow the law then they are ethical. Representative Engel and Harkin

attempted to enact a slave-free labeling system into law. Basically in order to become a law,

the House of Representatives and the Senate must approve it. The bill was not approved by

the Senate. Despite the fact that the U.S. chocolate producers are aware of the slavery

issue in the chocolate industry, they still ignore it.

Question 2

Marc Dreier grew in  Five Towns. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and earned a Juris

Doctor from . He began his career at Rosenman & Colin, Freund, Lewis & Cohen, then a 90-

lawyer litigation firm. He was a smart and hard-working guy. He married Elisa Peters whom

they separated later on. Drier joined Fulbright & Jaworski. He teamed with Neil to found a firm

called Dreier & Baritz. Dreier, Baritz, & Federman was formed with offices in New York

and Boca Raton. He favored plaintiff class-action lawsuits, which brought in large revenue.

Federman had problems with Dreier's spending, managerial style, and secrecy, which ended in a

lawsuit.

A moral dilemma is a conflict in which a person must choose between two or more actions.

Dreier had to choose between giving his family attention and to commit to his work. However,

some sources revealed that his wife claimed that Drier was hiding assets from her.

Dreier’s friends didn’t trust him fully. They said that he always put his interests first. He was a

type of guy who would do anything a client asked if it was in his interest.He structured their firm

in a way that he owned it solely instead of sharing ownership with his colleagues. The attorneys

were named partners but in reality they were just employees who couldn’t share in the firms

profits but were paid salaries.

Utilitarianism judges what the rightness or wrongness of actions of a person by the goodness or

badness of the consequences they bring about. Marc Dreier did acted without considering the

consequences he would bring about so long as it was in his interest. He structured their firm in a
way that he could reap a lot than his colleagues. He ought to have acted in a manner that could

maximize pleasure and reduce suffering.

Virtue ethics focuses on the growth of righteous character. Aristotle argues that a person’s

character is voluntary, since it results from many sole actions which are under his individual

control. Dreier hid his assets from his wife and also put his interests first.

Deontological ethics places emphasis on the relationship between a human action and morality.

Some of Marc Dreier’s actions were not in accordance with morality. He was a type of guy who

would do anything a client asked if it was in his interest regardless of their outcome on human

welfare.

Social contract theory says that people live together in the community in accordance with an

agreement that establishes moral and political rules of conduct. Dreier’s friends didn’t trust him

fully. They said that he always put his interests first. One friend said that, ‘part of him wanted to have

friends but all of him wanted to be admired.

Question 3

A moral dilemma is a conflict in which a person must choose between two or more actions.

Ethical dilemmas are especially significant in professional life, as they frequently occur in the

workplace. Some companies and professional organizations adhere to their own codes of conduct
and ethical standards. Violation of the standards may lead to disciplinary sanctions. In order to

solve ethical problems, organizations should develop strict ethical standards for their employees.

In this issue the player had assaulted his fiancée and the NFL had set policies against domestic

violence. The ethical dilemma in this issue was whether to keep the player or suspend him. Being

the best player he had a stellar reputation and some fans argued that he should continue playing

while others agreed with the punishment meted out by the organization. His actions were not

morally acceptable and he didn’t act virtuously. Inability to determine the optimal solution to

such dilemmas in a professional setting may result in serious consequences for businesses and

organizations therefore it is advisable for organizations to set rules that govern their operations.

Another ethical dilemma arises in the case of Ezekiel Elliot on whether to let him continue

playing so that his reputation and financial status may not be affected or suspend him as per the

codes of conduct and ethical standards of the football team. If there were no set rules the football

team could be in a dilemma on whether to let him continue playing or suspend him and that

could lead to serious consequences.

Question 4

US citizens feared the potential outbreak in America and were calling for the closure of their

borders others believed that they were safe and closure of borders could affect business and was
also discriminatory as it was a fundamental freedom for one to move freely. According to the

utilitarian theory it could be wise for closure of the borders to prevent the spread of the virus as

this theory judges the goodness or badness of actions by the consequences they bring about. It

also says that one should maximize pleasure and reduce unhappiness.

In virtue ethics it could be righteous to let people enjoy their fundamental freedom of moving

freely throughout their country. It could be discriminatory to bar people outside the country from

coming to the US. This theory focuses on growth of righteous character. it looks at the virtue or

moral character of the person carrying out an action, rather than at ethical duties and rules, or the

consequences of particular actions.

Deontological places emphasis on the relationship between a human action and morality. In this

case they would go for closure of the borders regardless of the consequences that will be faced in

terms of business or to the people. It focuses on the characteristics of the action rather than the

product of the action and it also holds that some acts are morally obligatory regardless of their

outcome on human well-being.

Social contract theory says that people live together in the community in accordance with an

agreement that establishes moral and political rules of conduct. Rules of conduct should be put in

places to govern the operations of a country.