The poem, Travelling Through The Dark, is a testament to the issue of morality vs utilitarianism. In this poem, utilitarianism is the dominant theme. However, it goes on to explore the moral issues surrounding the ideology: whether the common good is more important than the individual, and whether the one is more important than the many. The author, William Stafford, explores these issues through a unique situation, that of a traveler finding a pregnant dead deer on the road. The traveler ultimately decides the fawn's death is necessary for the safety of others but not without angst. As such, the decision made illustrates the major choice between a utilitarian way of life and a life upholding morality in all situations, no matter the cost.
As stated, utilitarianism is the dominant concept presented in this poem. J. P. Moreland, in an excerpt from The Euthanasia Debut: Understanding the Issues states, "There are several varieties of utilitarianism. But basically, a utilitarian approach to morality implies that no moral act (e. g. , an act of stealing) or rule (e. g. , "Keep your promises") is intrinsically right or wrong. Rather, the rightness or wrongness of an act is solely a matter of the overall nonmoral good (e. g. , pleasure, happiness, health, knowledge, or satisfaction of individual desire) produced in the consequences of doing that act or following that rule." /article DE197-1/. The utilitarian act that occurs in the poem is the killing of a living baby fawn within its dead mother instead of attempting to save the baby by taking the mother to a veterinarian or other animal specialist. Murder, or any form of killing, is inherently immoral. Therefore, it can be said this utilitarian act was immoral. Yet, while it was immoral and perhaps unethical, it maximized the good that could come out of such a situation. This is the trading of one life for the lives of perhaps many others, animal or human. Although people often favor utilitarianism when faced with moral decisions, it is obvious that an immoral nature resides within this specific ideology.
Another excerpt from The Euthanasia Debut: Understanding the Issues states, "One main problem is that utilitarianism, if adopted, justifies as morally appropriate things that are clearly immoral. For example, utilitarianism can be used to justify punishing an innocent man or enslaving a small group of people if such acts produce a maximization of consequences. But these acts are clearly immoral regardless of how fruitful they might be for the greatest number." /article DE197-1/. The traveler in the poem decides to do just this, perform an immoral act justified as morally appropriate according to this utilitarian concept. The traveler sees the danger of leaving a dead deer on the narrow unsafe road a...
