I was talking with a friend earlier today, and he brought up this interesting moral dilemma. It shows just how easy it is to place blame on the victim.
Suppose there is this situation:
A Duke leaves his castle for the weekend, and tells his wife to stay within the castle walls. He independently commands the guards to kill anyone who tries to enter the castle while he is away. The Duchess leaves for a secret rendezvous with her lover outside the castle. When she tries to get back into the castle the next morning, the drawbridge has been lifted and she doesn't have a way to cross the moat. She goes into to town, and tries rent a boat from a fisherman, only to realize she has no money. She then goes to a friend's house, and asks her if she could borrow money to hire the boat. The friend refuses, and tells her that she should live with her mistake. She then goes back to the moat, and tries to swim across. The guard tells her that if she continues, he will have to kill her. She proceeds, and the guard kills her.
Order the six people (Duke, Duchess, The Lover, The Guard, The Fisherman, and The Friend) in order from most to least blame they have for her death, and why.
Suppose there is this situation:
A Duke leaves his castle for the weekend, and tells his wife to stay within the castle walls. He independently commands the guards to kill anyone who tries to enter the castle while he is away. The Duchess leaves for a secret rendezvous with her lover outside the castle. When she tries to get back into the castle the next morning, the drawbridge has been lifted and she doesn't have a way to cross the moat. She goes into to town, and tries rent a boat from a fisherman, only to realize she has no money. She then goes to a friend's house, and asks her if she could borrow money to hire the boat. The friend refuses, and tells her that she should live with her mistake. She then goes back to the moat, and tries to swim across. The guard tells her that if she continues, he will have to kill her. She proceeds, and the guard kills her.
Order the six people (Duke, Duchess, The Lover, The Guard, The Fisherman, and The Friend) in order from most to least blame they have for her death, and why.