Download Kant`s Ethics

Emmanuel Kant
Ethics of Duty
Fundamental Principle
What makes a will good?
 Not what it performs: To undertake great, heroic deeds does not make a will good.

Not its effects: Neither do good accomplishments – negotiating world peace or curing
cancer.

Only the volition – the act of willing – makes the will good.
1st Principle of a good will: DUTY
Not just according to duty:
Example of the shopkeeper for whom honesty is good business.
But from or for the sake of duty. Because duty requires.
Whether advantageous or not, be honest.
Only actions for the sake of duty have moral worth.
Other Examples
Philanthropist
Unworthy: Gives from a warm feeling of sympathy for others.
Worthy: Even with cold indifference to others, he gives because it is his duty.
But would such a person make a good husband (e.g. Karenin in Anna Karenina) or parent?
2nd Principle: The Maxim
“An action done from duty derives its moral worth, not from the purpose to be
attained by it, but from the maxim by which it is determined.”
Some possible maxims:
 “I will brush my teeth twice a day.”

“I will deceive my business partners for my own advantage.”

“I will give part of my surplus wealth to relief of the poor.”
3rd Principle: What duty is
“Duty is the necessity of acting from respect for the law.”
“The preeminent good which we call moral can therefore consist in nothing else than
the conception of law in itself, which is certainly possible only in a rational being.”
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So, in a way, Kant wants eternal laws for all men, but without Moses, Mount Sinai or
God – an objective, purely rational morality.
Kant’s Fundamental Conclusion
“I am never to act otherwise than [in such a way] that I could also will that my maxim
should become a universal law.”
For Example ~ Promises
 In difficulties, I can solve my problems with a false promise. Should I?

Maybe not. Lies are hard to sustain.

I could get caught. Then I would be worse off than before.
But this maxim is based only on fear of consequences. It’s not truly
moral.
Lying ~ a universal law?
 Can this maxim be a universal law: “When I find myself in trouble, I will make
false promises”?

No. “With such a law there would be no promises at all.” No one would ever
believe my promises.

“Hence my maxim, as soon as it should be made a universal law, would
necessarily destroy itself.”
Some important themes
Beauty of the moral life. Morality is something that “connoisseurs” can admire.
Real moral goodness does not – cannot – involve self-interest. Moral goodness lies in
the moment of decision. Intending and trying is as good as doing.
In a sense, Kant wants a rationalist alternative to Christian ideas of holiness, altruistic
love and duty to God.
The Heart of the Issue: Categorical Imperative
Kinds of Imperative
Hypothetical: If I want this, then I must…
To drive to Chicago, I must use the Toll road or I-94.
To preserve my health I must exercise and eat a healthy diet.
Categorical: Under all conditions, no matter what, I must…
A categorical imperative is a command of reason.
Categorical Imperative
It “represented an action as necessary of itself without reference to another end, that
is, as objectively necessary.”
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The one categorical imperative: “Act only on that maxim whereby you can at the same
time till that it should become a universal law.”
Kant then gives some examples.
First Example: Suicide
Reduced to despair by misfortunes, one asks, “Is it against duty to take my own life?”
The maxim: “From self-love I adopt it as a principle to shorten my life when its
longer duration is likely to bring more evil than satisfaction.”
But this could not possibly be a law of nature, for life to destroy itself.
Second Example: False Promise
Maxim: When I think myself in want of money, I will borrow it and promise to repay,
although I know I can never do so.”
This might be consistent with my future welfare, but…
It would contradict itself as a universal law. Promising itself would become impossible.
Third Example: Developing Talents
Maxim: Since I am comfortable and enjoying a pleasant life, I will neglect developing
my natural gifts.
Although we can envision a life of pleasant enjoyment, one cannot will as a universal
law that one neglect personal development.
Fourth Example: Charity to Others
Maxim: I will not contribute anything to others who are in distress.
We can envision such a society.
Nevertheless, it is self-contradictory for one might need the help of others at some
time. So he cannot will this maxim as a universal law.
Practical Imperative
“So treat humanity, whether in you own person or in that of any other, in every case as
an end, never as a means only.”
Respect for Persons
The Value of Things
The worth of a thing is always conditional.
A hammer is good, if you want to build something. A car is good, if you want to go
somewhere. A slide rule or manual typewriter has only sentimental value.
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A rational being exists as an end in itself, and not as a thing.
Implications of Practical Imperative
 To commit suicide is to treat oneself as a means to a tolerable life, as a means.

To promise falsely is to treat the other person as a means. It is to use him or
her.

To neglect self improvement does not violate this imperative, but neither does
it harmonize with it.

To ignore the happiness of others does not harmonize with the respect one
ought to have for them as persons.
Consequences of the Practical Imperative
 Dignity of the person: Every person is an end in himself and not to be used as
a tool.

Freedom: The rational being determines his own behavior and ought by right
to act on his own.

Autonomy: The rational being makes the laws of his own behavior and ought
not be governed by any laws, except the laws of reason.
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