Topic / Subject: Case Study

Reference Style: APA

Batman Arkham Asylum the Problem With Vigilante Justice

Imagine that Batman, a vigilante working outside the law, has the ability to use technology and create a system to monitor every person’s phone conversations, text messages, and emails in a 50-mile area. The Joker, a most heinous villain, is on the loose and threatening to kill 500 people in the next hour.

Batman proceeds to break the law by invading the privacy of millions of people. He finds the Joker and dramatically breaks the speed limit in the Bat mobile. Batman again takes the law into his own hands, using violence to stop the Joker and his henchmen.

Batman, who never kills anyone, then hands these villains over to the police, who in turn send them off as prisoners to Arkham Asylum. No innocent lives are lost. What is the difference between how an Act Utilitarian and a Rule Utilitarian would approach this situation? Between Act Utilitarianism and Rule Utilitarianism, which do you think is better, and why? Do you think that Utilitarianism as a whole is on the right track? Or do you tend to reject the very basis of all forms of Utilitarianism? Provide your rationale.

The-Elements-of-Moral-Philosophy-8th-Edition