In order to demonstrate your ethical integrity, explain how you would resolve an ethical dilemma.
Consider a situation in which a group of people are enjoying an outdoor adventure together. One person gets stuck in the only way in or out of an enclosed space, such as a cave. Water starts rising in the cave due to high tide or heavy rainfall. Everyone will perish if the person isn’t removed from the entrance. There is no way of removing the person who is stuck so that the individual will survive.
This is one of the most extreme moral dilemma examples, as well as an ethical dilemma. The choice is between actively causing one person’s death or allowing people (including oneself) to die. Someone following a utilitarian approach to ethics would likely choose to eliminate the person who is stuck, as this philosophy is based on choosing actions that result in the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Someone who focuses primarily on the sanctity of each individual life, however, would not consider harming the person who is stuck to be a viable option. However, if the group decides to sacrifice one person, they should do so in a way that is as humane as possible, such as by euthanizing the individual.