Philosophy

Philosophy Study Guide

principle of duty that determines the moral value of actions. Deontology is the ethical view that moral value is determined by fulfilling one’s duty. Deontologists are intent on discovering the moral duties that all people in all situations should follow. Kant was convinced that all other potential foundations for morality were flawed and believed that what needed to occur was a grounding for morality that is beyond the everyday experience of personal inclinations. Kant believed that we needed to develop a metaphysic of morals that will stand independently of any particular moral belief or custom. He believed that this could only be established by discovering the necessary and universal laws of moral conduct, laws that are a priori. A law that is a priori is one that we can be certain is true independently of its application to actual firsthand experience. Kant believed that there is only one way that we can discover such necessary and universal moral laws and that is through the faculty of reason. Kant believed that in order to fully appreciate the binding and compelling nature of our universal moral obligations, we must first understand the human will. It is not enough for people to be told or even understand what their moral obligations are; they need to choose to respond to these moral laws. There are many times when people know what is the morally right thing to do; they simply do not do it. For Kant, fulfilling your potential as a moral person involves developing a clear understanding of the necessary and universal moral laws that apply to all people in all circumstances, and developing the good will to actually follow these laws. We can discover these universal laws by using our ability to reason thoughtfully and logically, and it is through our recognition and acceptance of ourselves as rational beings that we develop the good will to make choices in our daily lives that reflect these universal duties. In Kant’s work known as Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysics of Morals , he makes an inspired argument to ground his moral system in the concept of good will. He asks us to consider all the qualities of mind and temperament that we normally value: intelligence, wit, judgment, courage, resolution, and perseverance. In the service of a will that is evil, these qualities are stripped of their moral value. Kant’s point is that it is the good will that is the irreducible source of moral value and other qualities and characteristics that we normally associate with moral goodness are derivative, depending for their moral value on the goodness of the will exercising for them. Kant believed that even though the will is the only human faculty capable of being purely and good, it is often contaminated by inclinations (desires and motives) that result in actions that are not good. The will is vulnerable to the emotions and desires that form the lifeblood of human experience. Sometimes these emotions and desires are morally good and they influence the will in a positive direction. Often, however, emotions and desires can bemorallymisdirected resulting inwilled choices that aremorally lacking or even evil. The bottom line is that though the good will is the mainspring of moral goodness, it is a force that needs to be directed by reason. It is the human ability to reason and reflect that makes possible the creation of moral ideals that we can then will into existence through the choices we make. These moral ideals function as commands, pushing us to strive for moral excellence in our lives. These ideas are imperatives (priorities) that create a sense of moral obligation in determining the direction of our actions. The ability to think rationally provides us with the insight and authority to determine what we ought to do. Kant distinguishes two kinds of moral imperatives known as hypothetical imperatives and categorical imperatives. Hypothetical imperative is a moral maxim (saying) that does not express a value that one should pursue independently. Instead the action being commanded by the maxim is seen only as a means to something else. None of the actions being commanded are considered to be intrinsically

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