The Lady or the Tiger?, a thought experiment Options

[hi-C]

So, there's this short story by Frank Stockton called "The Lady or the Tiger?" and in it, this woman has to decide between sending her lover to his death or to marriage to another woman. You can read it for yourself here (it's pretty short, it won't take you but 10-15 minutes to read it if you so choose).

Anyway, after reading this story, I got to thinking, "What would I pick?" And I'm not entirely sure I'd let the guy live. I wonder if that makes me selfish.

Which would you pick?

[hi-C]

^ Yeah, but in the story, the woman's father charged him with a crime -- loving the daughter, because the daughter was a princess -- and the way they decided who was innocent and who was guilty was to let them choose between two doors, one with a tiger behind it who would maul the person to death (meaning a guilty verdict) and one with a lady (or man, depending on who did the crime) behind it, to whom he or she would instantly become married (innocent verdict). The doors weren't labeled, it was all up to luck.