Initial Post:

How can reason and utility apply to modern society? Does equality of opportunity still exist? Give an example to support your position on both questions.

 

You are required to make at least one post that responds to your classmates' posts. In your reply, you need to address specific points made by your classmate(s) within their post and ask a follow up question to promote more thought and discussion on the topic.

 

classmates post below: response to statement below

 

Reason can apply to civil society by using logic to get citizens to think or behave a certain way. Utility, on the other hand, relies on an actual useful resonance to this logic. In other words, you need to have logic and understanding, while appropriately applying the logic in society to ensure efficacy in societal evolution. 

 

I do not necessarily believe equality of opportunity ever completely existed. Even if genetic and developmental prejudice never existed, classist advantages would allow opportunities to some that other classes could not conceive of owning or experiencing based on wealth. To backtrack slightly, different classes exist in the United States, based on a family's wealth. Some people are born into wealth, while many are also born into poverty. There will be some things those born into poverty will never have the opportunity to own or experience because they will like struggle a majority of their life, and, even if they do climb out of poverty, those born into wealth will have a great head start. Of course, we do hear of those rare cases of people escaping a low-income class, but for many, it just is unrealistic. I think unless people want to live in a socialist society, it will be unlikely that equality of opportunity will exist, and even then, there will be some thing not everybody is able to participate in for one reason or another.