Ethical hypothetical

[Kyriakos]

Suppose you met a man, you never knew before. He seemed to be nice, calm, even a bit happy perhaps. After a few minutes of discussing with him you notice something: his right arm is missing.
From then on you alternate between thinking of how powerful a personality this man must have, to be seemingly so joyful when he has suffered an amputation, and wondering if it is, perhaps to the contrary, just a facade.
But then you leave the room, and outside of it you meet someone you know, who also knows the man in question. You mentioned the one-armed man to him, and he tells you his story.

It seems that the one-armed man is totally oblivious to the fact that he has just one arm. In his imagination he has two arms. The amputation was repressed, and the brain, in face of clear danger to its self-sustainance, created an elaborate delusion according to which the person has both his arms.

You have the choice of leaving the building, and never to return, leaving the one-armed man in his current state, or

get back inside the room and try to convince him he is amputated.

Clearly there are pros and cons to both behaviors, so what would you choose? And why?

Poll will be up soon.

 

[Loppan Torkel]

I wouldn't tell him.

 

[Kyriakos]

I wouldn't tell him.

I voted for that as well. To put it in few words: if his brain has already chosen that it is impossible for him to live with one arm, it is nearly impossible to alter enough his psychical make-up to allow for a non-collapse at the moment the repressed memory returns.

 

[Perfection]

Wouldn't return: Not my place to make said decision.

BTW. I wouldn't find it odd that a man who suffered an amputation should be joyful.

 

[Monsterzuma]

i would convince him out of spite.

 

[Kyriakos]

It should be noted that this is a real case (i was told about it, and it has been documented in a book as well)

 

[_random_]

I suppose it would be up to medical professionals to determine the best time to tell him this, but I don't see this as a fundamental conflict between knowledge and happiness. Plenty of amputees find happiness.

 

[Kyriakos]

I suppose it would be up to medical professionals to determine the best time to tell him this, but I don't see this as a fundamental conflict between knowledge and happiness. Plenty of amputees find happiness.

I agree entirely. In fact it can be argued that even if there existed a sole amputee who was "happy" (obviously things are more complicated) it would stand to reason to claim that the issue is mostly one of the mental make-up of the individual, and not so much the real handicap.

But i would like to stress the fact that in this case it is very clear that the person was nowhere near ready to face what happened to him, in fact it should be guessed that he was in dire need of the delusion just so as to survive, which is why it happened.

 

[Lone Wolf]

Leave. Not my business to involve myself in psychological complications like that. What if he starts yelling and throwing things at me the second I say the word "amputation"?

 

[Janig]

I criticise the storyteller because he is full of nonsense.

Ive met two men with amputated arms and theyre both quite straightforward about their limbs; I dont judge their condition much further than that.

 

[Kyriakos]

I criticise the storyteller because he is full of nonsense.

Ive met two men with amputated arms and theyre both quite straightforward about their limbs; I dont judge their condition much further than that.

That is like one claiming that since he met two people who are trolls, everyone is.

In other words: just because some people are ok with it, does not mean all would react the same way. Really, this is very basic stuff.

 

[kramerfan86]

Most people arent shocked that someone is happy despite missing a limb, so right off the bat the hypothetical is flawed. Nevermind how unbelievable it is that somehow he hasnt tried to grab something with his nonexistant arm and therefore been forced to accept the truth anyways.

 

[Kyriakos]

Most people arent shocked that someone is happy despite missing a limb, so right off the bat the hypothetical is flawed. Nevermind how unbelievable it is that somehow he hasnt tried to grab something with his nonexistant arm and therefore been forced to accept the truth anyways.

Not really as good an argument as you think it was, since it is very easy for the brain to find "explanations" for the individual not wanting to pick something with his right arm.
And even if it did not, who is to say he could not have delusions in experiencing picking things up?
The realm of consciousness is not the same for all

 

[Loppan Torkel]

I forget, but what's the condition that makes it impossible to turn right/left or the one where you lose the awareness of either side of the body..? This doesn't seem impossible.

 

[Janig]

That is like one claiming that since he met two people who are trolls, everyone is.

In other words: just because some people are ok with it, does not mean all would react the same way. Really, this is very basic stuff.

Youre either misunderstanding or misrepresenting what I wrote. I wrote I criticise the storyteller because he is full of nonsense; I dont care if anyone goes off on a rant about anyone unless I specifically asked for it, and I didnt.

 

[JohannaK]

I'm not concerned by his state. Why should I have any reasons to believe that his joyful behaviour is motivated by his ignorance of the fact that he has 1 arm only?
And if I cared, who am I to try to take him out of his state? Because I do have a trauma, my life sucks and I can't stand him not having a life that sucks? Maybe, but I don't, so it's not me, but him, who must realise it if he has to.

BTW, if I have no reason other than this to leave the building, I wouldn't. And if I casually met the man again, I'd just talk to him again if such was his wish.

 

[NickyJ]

I'm not concerned by his state. Why should I have any reasons to believe that his joyful behaviour is motivated by his ignorance of the fact that he has 1 arm only?
And if I cared, who am I to try to take him out of his state? Because I do have a trauma, my life sucks and I can't stand him not having a life that sucks? Maybe, but I don't, so it's not me, but him, who must realise it if he has to.

BTW, if I have no reason other than this to leave the building, I wouldn't. And if I casually met the man again, I'd just talk to him again if such was his wish.

Agreed. I don't see the reason for never speaking to him again. Is he really that much different from before you knew him?

 

[bernie14]

dys/a (impairment or loss of ability) praxia (motor skills), lexia (language skills) or gnosia (awareness/recognition of) is usually more reflective of some sort of brain damage, whereas a delusion is simply a false idea.....i would like to know if the man's lack of awareness is physiological (does he have a spreading tumor or vascular disease that can be treated) or is it simply a psychological "defense" mechanism....

if the later is the case, i would do nothing....i think we are all deluded (unless you know everything AND have never been lied to)....treatment for a delusion would only be appropiate IF the delusions would result in a danger to self or others or significantly impair one's ability to function

 

[rugbyLEAGUEfan]

BTW. I wouldn't find it odd that a man who suffered an amputation should be joyful.

Wise words

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

I think I would not tell him because he seems just fine as he is and I don't think it would be too bad unless he's falling off a cliff and lets go because he forgot he didn't have two arms and that doesn't matter as we don't have a lot of cliffs where I live.