Play The Trolley Problem
Choose the Trolley's Destination
A trolley is speeding down the tracks toward five people who can't get away. You're standing next to a lever that can switch the trolley onto another track but there's one person on that track too.
What is your choice?
The Trolley Problem is a thought experiment in ethics. First introduced by philosopher Philippa Foot in 1967, and refined by Judith Jarvis Thompson (1976), it highlights the uncomfortable calculations in morality.
The Scenario
Imagine a runaway trolley barreling down a set of tracks. Up ahead, five people are tied to the tracks and cannot move. You are standing next to a lever. If you pull it, the trolley will switch to a side track. However, there is one person tied to that side track.
The Dilemma:
Option A: Do nothing, and five people die.
Option B: Pull the lever, saving five people but directly causing the death of one.
The Philosophical Conflict
The reason this problem is so enduring is that it pits two major schools of ethical thought against each other:
Utilitarianism (Consequentialism)
A utilitarian would argue that the "right" choice is the one that results in the greatest good for the greatest number.
Logic: Five lives are objectively more valuable than one.
Action: Pull the lever.
Deontology (Duty-based Ethics)
A deontologist, like Immanuel Kant, would focus on the morality of the action itself rather than the outcome.
Logic: Killing is inherently wrong. By pulling the lever, you are actively participating in a killing. By doing nothing, you are merely a witness to a tragedy.
Action: Do not pull the lever.
