Lesson 2 On Ethics Moral Dilemma

LESSON 2 ON ETHICS:
MORAL DILEMMAS
By: Reuben A. Corpuz &
Brenda B. Corpuz - Ethics
LEARNING
OUTCOME:
• Identify moral issues in life.
• Distinguish between moral dilemmas and
a false dilemma.
• Make moral decisions in response to the
issues being confronted.
• Appreciate the beauty of making moral
decisions despite of the dilemmas
experienced.
INTRODUCTION
" Sometimes, it's the smallest decisions that can change one's life
forever" (Keri Russel). Human as we are called to decide in every issues
we encounter in life. We make decisions based on our reason or feeling at a
given situation. It is said that when you find yourself in a moral dilemma,
you are in for a moral experience. What is moral dilemma?
Human beings are always confronted everyday with issue, decision

making, moral judgement and dilemma. Issue is used to refer to those
particular situations that are often the source of considerable and inclusive
debate. When one is placed in a situation and confront6ed by the choice of
what act to perform, the person is called to make a moral decision. When a
person is an observer who makes an assessment on the action or behavior
of someone, she is making a moral judgement. Going beyond the matter of
choosing right over wrong, or good over bad, and considering instead the
more complicated situation wherein one is torn between choosing one of
the two goods or choosing between the lesser of two evils: this is moral
dilemma.
MORAL DILEMMA DEFINED
Moral Dilemma is a problem in the decision making between
two possible options, neither of which is absolutely
acceptable from an ethical perspective. It is also referred to
as ethical dilemma.
The Oxford Dictionary defines Ethical Dilemma as a
"decision-making problem between two possible moral
imperatives, neither of which is unambiguously acceptable or
preferable. It is sometimes called an ethical paradox in moral
philosophy."
Based on the definition given, moral dilemmas have the

following characteristics:
• the agent required to do each of two (or more) actions
which are morally unacceptable.
• the agent can do each of the actions.
• The agent cannot do both (or all) of the actions.
The agent thus seems condemned to moral failure; no

matter what he/she does, he/she will do something
wrong (or fail to do something that he/she ought to do).
This means that moral dilemmas are situations where

two or more moral values or duties makes demands on
the decision-maker, who can only honor one of them,
and thus will violate at least one important moral
concern, no matter what he/she decides to do. Moral
dilemmas present more or less equal footing. The
decision-maker has to choose between a wrong and
another wrong. The decision-maker is a deadlock.
To have a genuine dilemma, one of the conflicting
solution should not override the other. For instance, "
the requirements to protect others from serious harm
overrides the requirement to repay one's debts by
returning a borrowed item when the owner so
demands." In addition to the features mentioned
above, in order to have a genuine moral dilemma it
must also be true that neither of the conflicting
requirements is overridden (Mc Connell,2019). This
means that none of the conflicting requirements is
solved by the other. The person involved in the
dilemma are in deadlock. They find themselves in a
(damn-if-you-don't situation).
MORAL DILEMMA
DEFINED
The story of King Herod in the Bible is an example
of a moral dilemma. The story goes: "On his birthday, his
stepdaughter, Salome danced so well in front of him and the
guests at his party that he promised to give her anything she
wanted. Salome consulted her mother about what she
should wish for, and decided to ask for the head of John the
Baptist on a platter. The King now had a choice between
honoring the promise to his stepdaughter, or honoring the
life of John the Baptist. and Herod chose to have John the
Baptist beheaded.
The king had inadvertently designed a moral trap

for himself, a dilemma where whatever he decided to do
would be morally wrong.
WHY IS MORAL DILEMMA
IMPORTANT?
Moral dilemmas are helpful for individuals to interrogate who they
really are as individuals to interrogate who they really are as
individuals. It helps them in making choices that they consider
correct even when others deem them as incorrect.
MEANING OF
DILEMMA
False Dilemma is a situation where the decision-maker has a moral
duty to do one thing, but tempted or under pressure to do
something else. A false dilemma is a choice between a right and a
wrong. Example: a lawyer or an accountant can face an
opportunity to prioritize self-interest over the client's interest.
WHAT TO DO WHNE FACED WITH A
MOIRAL DILEMMA
Dilemmas are conflicts in the application of moral
standards. The question is which moral standards must
be followed? In a state of emergency, necessity
demands no moral law. You have to decide based on
your best judgements or choose based on the principle
of lesser evil or greater good or urgency.
When faced with a moral dilemma, there are many

factors to consider. Who is involved and why? Is action
necessary and if so, what do you do? Perhaps, it's better
to tell someone else about the dilemma and let them
decide what to do. Maybe there are other solutions that
are not plan to see at first. No matter the situation, here
are some recommendations to help figure out how to
handle a moral dilemma-use logic instead of emotion.
WHAT TO DO WHNE FACED WITH A
MOIRAL
While this may DILEMMA
seem difficult to do, it's often the best way to
handle a situation without being too biased one way or another,
depending on the circumstances. using logic forces a person TO
CONSIDER AS MANY PERSPECTIVES AS POSSIBLE TO
FIND THE BEST POSSIBLE SOLUTION. THINKING
LOGICALLY CAN ALSO HELP A PERSON CALM DOWN
AND RELAX instead of being too emotionally charged to make a
reasonable decision.
Understandably, there will be a situations in which this is not

possible due to the nature of the dilemma. In this case, it might be
best to wait on a decision until emotions aren't so volatile.
WEIGH THE PROS AND CONS OF EACH DECISIONS.
This is a bit tricky because there may be only cons for each
decision. In this case, logic dictates that the fewest number of cons
is likely the most reasonable decision. No matter what, working
through a pros and cons list might bring to light other factors tat
can influence a decision.
B RI E F S U MMA RY
• A moral dilemma is a decision making problem between
two possible moral imperatives, neither of which is
unambiguously acceptable or preferable.
• A moral dilemma is a situation where a person has the

moral obligation to choose between two options both
based on moral standards, but he/she cannot choose both,
a nd choosing one means violating the other.
• In moral dilemma, one is caught between two options. It

is a 'damn-if-you don't situation. One is in a deadlock.
• Lastly, false dilemma are situations where the decision-

maker has a moral duty to do one thing, but is tempted or
under pressure to do something else. A false dilemma is a
choice between a right and a wrong unlike a moral
dilemma where both choices are wrong.

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LESSON 2 ON ETHICS:

Human beings are always confronted everyday with issue, decision

Based on the definition given, moral dilemmas have the

The agent thus seems condemned to moral failure; no

This means that moral dilemmas are situations where

The king had inadvertently designed a moral trap

When faced with a moral dilemma, there are many

Understandably, there will be a situations in which this is not

• A moral dilemma is a situation where a person has the

• In moral dilemma, one is caught between two options. It

• Lastly, false dilemma are situations where the decision-

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