Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
OK
GREAT
Outcome A
Outcome B
Figure 2
Ok versus Great
Consider, as a first example, two possible outcomes of our choices,
outcome A and outcome B, represented as two possible future states of
the world. Outcome A consists of population OK with people whose
welfare is only slightly above the neutral level. Outcome B consists of
population GREAT that consists of very well-off people. The outcomes
are illustrated in the following where the height of the graph represents
the welfare level of the population and the width of the graph repre-
sents the number of people. Bringing about each outcome would be
equally right, according to the Narrow Person-Affecting Restriction, if
both populations consisted of different people.
After all, bringing about B rather than A would be better for no one.
The Wide Person-Affecting Restriction would prefer bringing about popu-
lation B, even if both outcomes contained different people and no single
being would exist in both outcomes. The reason is that outcome B would
be better for the B-people than outcome A would be for the A-people.
The second example is a choice situation in which we have the same
options A and B, but one person, Fred, would exist in both outcomes.
In outcome B, Fred would be as well off as the other very well-off
people in B. In outcome A, Fred would be even happier than that and
much happier than the OK people. As A would be better for Fred and
worse for no particular person, the Narrow Person-Affecting Principle
would require us to bring about outcome A. The Wide Person-Affecting
Restriction would not have this implication.
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It would hold that B is
better for the B-people than A is for the A-people. Therefore, the Wide
Person-Affecting Restriction would evaluate outcome B as better.
I think that the implications of the Wide Person-Affecting Restriction
are more in line with utilitarianism. Consider again, the second above-
mentioned example, featuring Fred. It seems that Fred is in a privileged
position here, according to the Narrow Person-Affecting Restriction.
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