The alqaeda attacks on september 11, which brought down new york citys twin towers, provoked the american governments vow to hunt down these terrorists, and punish them. For example, hes campaigning with illegal funds on the theory that if he wins the election the end. Jan 02, 2020 the ends justifying the means usually involves doing something wrong to achieve a positive end and justifying the wrongdoing by pointing to a good outcome. Definition of the end justifies the means in the idioms dictionary. The means are irrelevant if the ends are positive enough to trump them.
The saying, the end justifies the means, meaning that if a goal is morally important enough, any method of achieving it is acceptable. What are some examples of when the ends justify the means. The end justifies the means definition is used to say that a desired result is so good or important that any method, even a morally bad one, may be used to achieve it. The doctrine that the end justifies the means came to be used extensively in international politics when machiavelli incorporated it in his political writings, during the middle ages. This famous quote is relevant in leadership today by examples of harry trumans dropping of the atom bomb, hitlers final solution, and the attacks of 911. For example, if your goal is to save lives, its okay to cheat, steal, and lie to accomplish your goal. May 12, 2017 gandhi clearly did not believe that ends justify the means, and i agree with this conclusion in something like 99% of the ethical dilemmas we regularly face as human beings. Euthanasia seeks the good end of relieving suffering by the evil means of killing an innocent. The end justifies the means because there is no good or bad. The end justifies the means meaning in the cambridge. Niccolo machiavelli never said, the ends justify the means, although he did allude to a complex version of the concept in his prince and other works. It is a case, if ever there was one, where the end justifies the. End justifies the means essay sample new york essays.
It was later picked up and used to justify murderous acts by lenin and stalin. End justifies means is too trite for what now takes place, which is amoral and based on if you can get. You wanted a cookie, so you stole a cookie out of your younger siblings hands. Its immediate meaning is as follows if you have high, noble, important goal, you are free to resort to anything, however immoral it seems even to yourself. The ends justifying the means usually involves doing something wrong to achieve a positive end and justifying the wrongdoing by pointing to a good outcome. These common sayings are language tools that particularly give advice or share a universal truth, or impart wisdom. Direct abortion to save the life of the mother seeks to save an innocent life, but by means of killing an innocent.
End justifies the means, the definition of end justifies the means. Situation ethics, moral relativity, end justifies the means, practicality, and other terms. End justifies the means, the definition of end justifies. What does end justifies the means, the expression mean. The end justifies the meansmachevilli essay research. Consequentialism is an ethical theory that judges whether or not something is right by what its consequences are. Does the end justify the means essay examples 1279 words.
Another example would be justifying an abortion to save the mothers life. What is an example of the end justifies the means answers. For example, some students i have taught justified lying on their resume because it. An example would be lying on a resume to get a good job and justifying the lie by saying the larger income will.
Hence, the prince must take into account the actual realities. It means that if a goal is morally important enough, any method of getting it is acceptable. When nadab and abihu thought they could offer a strange fire to god, god showed his disapproval of their means when he consumed them with fire. Does the end justify the means essay examples 1279 words cram. The idea is ancient, but it was not meant to justify unnecessary cruelty. Given these examples, one might be led to believe that the ends can often justify the means. Such a belief, if left undisturbed and unchecked, can also impede the repentance process and cheat us out of exaltation. Is it possible for the end to justify the means essay. The phrase the ends justify the means means it is okay to do something wrong if the final result is something very good. The end justifies the means essay example studymoose. The end justifies the means is a phrase of sergey nechayev, the 19th century russian revolutionary. Genesis 27 the ends justifying the means usually involves doing something wrong the means to achieve a positive end or goal and justifying the wrongdoing by pointing to a good outcome. In general, the phrase the end justifies the means. The end justifies the means definition in the cambridge.
When a person says the ends justify the means they are saying that if the end result is noble enough, it will justify whatever measures are taken to achieve that goal. What does the end justifies the means expression mean. Oct 04, 2019 the three examples above show that the us government does effectively torture people, or take away their freedom, or have them killed, all for ends justify the means reasons. Two examples of consequentialism are utilitarianism and hedonism. The volume of philosophical discourse thats gone into analyzing the implications of the phrase is. There are many such examples of ends justify the means arguments. The purpose of this study is to consider what the bible says about the idea that the end justifies the means.
This notion is widely shared and is most often expressed by the phrase, the end justifies the means. In many cases, i think its often a saying that is merely slung around by those driven and. The end does not justify the means we shouldnt encourage that thinking. Niccolo machiavelli served as a secretary and diplomat of the florentine republic. Why the end doesnt justify the means, but the means can always justify the end. Some examples of this are murdering your father in order to acclaim the throne, the faults behind the 911 attack, and cheating on a test in order to get a good mark. He concluded that when it came to the exercise of power, a ruler should use any methods available to maintain stability. A characteristic behavior in todays society is the belief that the ends justifies the means. But if telling a lie would help save a persons life, consequentialism says its the right thing to do. The three examples above show that the us government does effectively torture people, or take away their freedom, or have them killed, all for ends justify the means reasons.
Examples of the end justifies the means spanishdict. For example, some students i have taught justified lying on their resume because it could help them get a job. The end justifies the means essay the college study. Chief executives and their management teams should do what they have to do to win. Oct 25, 2010 on the other hand, the law recognizes the principle of the end justifies the means, within reason. End justifies the means, the idioms by the free dictionary.
Machiavelli gives a complex answer to this fundamental politic problem. It usually implies that a moral goal may be achieved by. Most people have good intentions and wish to obtain praiseworthy goals ends but some forget, ignore, or try to justify using immoral methods means to accomplish those goals. Someone who wants to make the opposite argument might selectively pick certain historical instances where questionable action led to a favorable outcome overall. The end justifies the means idioms by the free dictionary. The end justifies the means simple english wikipedia, the.
And yet antiutilitarians present their thought experiments as if it were obvious that no sane person would ever approve of such horrible policies. Most of the other examples typically used for an end justifies. Is it better to have a set of rules telling you what you ought to do in any particular situation and then let the chips fall where they may, or should you worry more about how things are going to end up and do whatevers necessary to reach that goal. In simpler terms, this means that most anything is reasonable if it leads to an important and meaningful result.
The end justifies the means definition of the end justifies the. We are only justified when the means that we use to reach our goals are just as good as the end result. The end justifies the means simple english wikipedia. Torture may not be the perfect answer, but it has worked in the past, and you cannot discount the results. The end justifies the means moral theology catholic. The question whether the end justifies the means depends on the type of goal or end a person wants to achieve and the means they use. Real sentences showing how to use the end justifies the means correctly. A good outcome excuses any wrongs committed to attain it. On the other hand, the law recognizes the principle of the end justifies the means, within reason. Machiavelli said, the ends justify the means fact or myth. Of course, sometimes the end and the means are both morally evil.
The peoria journal star umno was a secular materialistic political party whose leaders modus operandi was. An example would be lying on a resume to get a good job and justifying the lie by saying the larger income will enable the liar to provide more adequately for his family. The end justifies the means confessions of an idiot. The end does not justify the means huffpost canada. If you are outdoors on a freezing night and you are left with no alternatives, you can break into a building for shelter, but you will still be responsible for any damage you do. Machiavelli meant by the end justifies the means, that the end result of an action was justified by the actions you took to get there. This phrase, originating from niccolo machiavellis book the prince, is interpreted by some to mean doing anything whatsoever that is required to get the result you want, regardless of. These two examples create a dilemma between what is done and what ought to be done. More often, the scenario is something less drastic, such as exaggerating.
We need to do everything we can to ensure the safety of our country. Contents hide 1 the ends justify the means meaning. One man called it using the devils tools to do gods work. In other words, the end justifies the means, and this is what i will be arguing.
The end justifies the means is an expression that is often used in society to validate or excuse distasteful and objectionable actions undertaken by its people. Apr 22, 2009 in other words, the end justifies the means, and this is what i will be arguing. Therefore peace or fairness isnt exactly enough to simply justify that the end does not justify the mean because people who fight for freedom or fairness almost always take it away to attain it. He advocated that national interest would justify all and any means which a country or nation might adopt to gain its political end. End justifies the means, the definition at, a free online dictionary with pronunciation, synonyms and translation. Whatever be the truth, the doctrine the end justifies the means happens to be a very controversial one which provokes much thinking and dispute. In this case, the end is the final result and the means are what you use or do to get to the final result. In business ethics, do the means justify the ends, or do the ends justify the means. In effect, the phrase is a justification for dispensing with all morality and principle in the passage towards a successful conclusion. Heres where i draw the line so business leaders dont end up sliding down that slippery slope. The end justifies the means is an old phrasing which dates way back in the 16th century and was formed from niccolo machiavellis famous saying men judge generally more by the eye than by the hand, because it belongs to everybody to see you, to few to come in touch with you.
Apr, 2018 in 15, niccolo machiavelli, arguably the finest political theorist of his time, used his famous work the prince to tease out means and ends theory. Throughout the history of mankind there always were people, ideologies and organizations that used the phrase the end justifies the means as their motto or the leading principle. Definition of end justifies the means, the in the idioms dictionary. In effect, the phrase is a justification for dispensing with all morality and principle in the passage towards a.
Niccolo machiavelli is one of the significant political and philosophical thinkers known by many of us. Justifies definition and meaning collins english dictionary. The end justifies the means definition of the end justifies. The end justifies the means implies that the goal is more important than the way by which it is achieved. In the prince, machiavelli is clearly warned against any attempt to turn what is, because machiavellis philosophy comes from the nature of men. For instance, most people would agree that lying is wrong. This question has been asked for millennia, with the resulting answers rarely perfect in their finite form. If both the means and the ends are equally noble and good, there is no question because the ends are justified by the means. We can deal with a difficult, sad story if it has a happy. Machiavelli is primarily known for the phrase the end justifies the means which has been continuously a subject of contention with regards to discussions and discourses today robertson, 2012.
How to use the end justifies the means in a sentence. I find there are only but a few handfuls of situations where your actions are truly justified by their outcomes. How to use the end justifies the means correctly grammarist. Read on to gain a deeper understanding of this philosophy, its origins, and examples of how we.
For although the act condemns the doer, the end may justify him see more related quotes. While he served machiavelli wrote a book, the prince, in 15 which assisted political leaders to keep power by any agencies necessary machiavelli 1. That rule provides that there are no rules anything goes, anything is fair the end justifies the means, any means, and the end is revolution. The end justifies the means definition is used to say that a desired result is so good or important that any method, even a.
Aug 24, 2010 one of the biggest lies ever adopted as truth has been the philosophy that a good end is justified by any means necessarygood or bad. For example, studies indicate that when we praise effort over performance in the classroom, students end up actually doing better academically. The end justifies the means is a proverb of uncertain origin, though the philosophy behind it has been argued for thousands of years. Sep 26, 2016 it is not true that the end justifies the means. Lesley rawlins the end justifies the means the end justifies the means is an expression that is often used in society to validate or excuse distasteful and objectionable actions undertaken by its people. We need to create a revolution of people who reward others for doing the right thing. Those who teach it are almost always attempting to excuse the use of improper or questionable means. Dec 20, 2016 niccolo machiavelli said, the ends justify the means.
This means actions people take are justified regardless of how they go about achieving their desired end result. When we were young it was easy to assume that the end justifies the means. A machiavellian perspective a characteristic behavior in todays society is the belief that the ends justifies the means. This is where the idea of the ends justifying the means get tricky. The end saving the patients life justifies the means cutting off a limbwhich is lasting damage.
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