OU on the BBC: Justice: The Case For Cannibalism

By: The OpenLearn team (The Open University)

The idea of eating human flesh creates something between moral repugnance and squeamishness in most people - but Michael Sandel asks if there can be a case for it.

02 Feb

2011

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In the second in a series of lectures drawn from Harvard professor Michael Sandel's famous undergraduate course on justice, he introduces the British utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham, with reference to an infamous 19th century legal case from Victorian England - the shipwreck of the Mignonette.

After nineteen days lost at sea, the ship's captain decided to kill the weakest amongst the survivors - the young cabin boy - so that the rest could feed on his blood and body. The case sets up a classroom debate about the moral validity of utilitarianism and its doctrine of the right thing to do being whatever produces the greatest good for the greatest number.

Find out more

Explore some moral questions - and your own attitude to lying

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Is it ok to wage war? Is it ok to defend yourself against an attacking army? Ethics Bites asks if it's always wrong to kill. Read more : What's wrong with killing?

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Harvard philosophy expert Michael Sandel gives us exclusive video insights into his views on eminent thinkers such as Kant, Bentham and Aristotle Read more : Michael Sandel on...

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Sandel discusses Bentham's view that justice is entirely about maximising one's own and everyone else's happiness Read more : Sandel on Bentham's views on happiness and justice

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A lie’s a lie, right? But what if it wasn’t that simple? This game makes you think about your moral responses to different lies Read more : To lie or not to lie?

Want to know more about philosophy, ethics and right and wrong? Consider these courses from The Open University:

Justice: A Citizen's Guide

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Marking the 50th anniversary of the campaigning group, Storyville presents a history of Amnesty International. Read more : OU on the BBC: Justice: Amnesty! When They Are All Free

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Timeshift steps outside the highly charged debate over electric chairs and fatal injections to investigate the facts about judical killings. Read more : OU on the BBC: Justice: Timeshift - Crime and Punishment - The Story of Capital Punishment

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Spare the rod and spoil the child? Timeshift looks back to what the world was like before the rod was spared. Read more : OU on the BBC: Justice: Timeshift - Crime and Punishment - The Story of Corporal Punishment

OU on the BBC: Justice: Timeshift - Retrial By Television BBC

Stepping in when justice goes wrong: BBC Four pays tribute to the campaigning team at Rough Justice. Read more : OU on the BBC: Justice: Timeshift - Retrial By Television

OU on the BBC: Justice: Justice with Michael Sandel The Open University

Michael Sandel takes a lively look at some of the moral questions surrounding our ideas of justice. Read more : OU on the BBC: Justice: Justice with Michael Sandel

OU on the BBC: Justice: Fairness And The Big Society BBC

Michael Sandel takes on the idea of fairness, and asks how it might apply to David Cameron's Big Society. Read more : OU on the BBC: Justice: Fairness And The Big Society

OU on the BBC: Justice: A Citizen's Guide To The 21st Century BBC

Michael Sandel explores justice from a philosophical angle - are there absolute rights and wrongs, and what can Bentham, Kant and Aristotle teach us? Read more : OU on the BBC: Justice: A Citizen's Guide To The 21st Century

Justice Season on the BBC

Read more about the Justice Season on the BBC Read more : Justice Season on the BBC

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Originally published:

Wednesday, 02nd February 2011

Last Updated on:

Wednesday, 02nd February 2011

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