kantian deontological ethics Flashcards
1
Q
good will and duty
A
- to have good will is to be motivated by duty
- an action is only good when a person acts from a sense of good will
- emotions are subjective and therefore not moral
- good will + duty = moral action
- duties include not: committing suicide, lusting, being greedy/drunk and lying
- we should do our duty because it is our duty
- you have a duty to follow moral law (which is summarised by the catagorical imperative)
2
Q
what is our duty
A
- what is morally right?
- what does good will, will?
- how can good will be good in itself?
- it must be something about the maxims it adopts but it can’t be what the maxims aim at
- since the good will is only good without qualification
3
Q
hypothetical imperative
A
- a command to act to achieve a desired result
- always begins with if
- goal oriented
- if the action would be good simply as a means to something else, then the imperative is hypothetical
4
Q
the two types of maxims
A
- categorical
- hypothetical
5
Q
the summum bonum
A
- Kant uses it to mean the highest happiness
- it is received in the afterlife and is a reward for acting out of one’s duty, as long as one has acted autonomously
- the summum bonum is a happy, fulfilled state of mind
- Kant said that the summum bonum is a necessary reward as otherwise it would be irrational to act morally (it ensures justice is served for those who acted morally/dutifully)
- to achieve the summum bonum, the categorical imperative has to be followed in order to have known what your duty is and then to have been acted on
- the reward is not give to those who preformed good actions for any other reason
6
Q
the three postulates
A
- there is a god
- we have immortality
- there is the possibility of freedom
7
Q
- there is a god
A
- only a divine being could have the knowledge required to reward the dutiful
- the summum bonum could only be given by a wholly good being (god is omnibenevolnet)
- this reward could only be given by a being with the power to do so
- Kant argues the innate moral law also acts as proof of god’s existence as he claims it is the best and only rational reason to accept the the truth of god’s existence
8
Q
- we have immorality
A
- there must be an immortal soul because the reward of highest happiness could not possibly be obtained in a moral life (as such a joy could not be experienced in this physical world)
- a reward would only really make sense when we have finished making moral decisions
- the summum bonum is therefore awarded to the immortal soul in the afterlife and for that reason many have compared the summum bonum to heaven
9
Q
- there is the possibility of freedom
A
- to obtain the summum bonum, you must have acted freely or a reward would not be appropriate
- therefore, freedom must be possible
- someone who acts morally but not freely can’t obtain the summum bonum
- this is one reason why you should not lie or undermine the autonomy of others and to not use others as a means to an end
10
Q
catagorical imperative
A
- tells everyone what to do (applies to all things)
- does not depend on a goal
- absolute moral obligation
- moral laws are catagorical
11
Q
the ways to test whether a maxim passes the categorical imperative
A
- contradiction in conception
- contradiction in will
12
Q
contradiction in conception
A
- for a law to be universal, it must not result in contradiction in conception (which is something that is self-contradictory)
- if a maxim leads to a contradiction in conception, you have a duty not to follow that maxim as it is always wrong
13
Q
contradiction in conception example
A
- is ‘you should steal’ a universally applicable maxim?
- if stealing was universally acceptable, then you could take whatever you wanted from someone, and the owner of the object would have no argument against it
- the concept of ownership wouldn’t make sense as everyone would have just as much right to an object as you do
- therefore, in a world where stealing is universally acceptable, there is no concept of private property
- and if there is no such thing as private property, then stealing is impossible
- therefore, Kant would say, the maxim ‘you should steal’ leads to a contradiction in conception
- and consequently, stealing is not morally permissible
14
Q
contradiction in will
A
- assuming the maxim does not result in a contradiction in conception, it then must be asked whether the maxim results in a contradiction in will (can rationally will a maxim or not)
- eg can we rationally will ‘not to help others in need?’
- there is no contradiction in conception in a world where nobody helps anyone else
- but Kant says we can’t rationally will it because we have goals (ends) that cannot be achieved without the help of others
- to will the ends, we must also will the means, therefore we can’t rationally will the goals without willing the help of others (means)
- however, not all goals require the help of others
- therefore, Kant argues this results in an imperfect duty (sometimes it is wrong to follow the maxim ‘not to help others in need’)
15
Q
formula of universal law
A
‘act only in accordance with that maxim through which you at the same time can will that it became a universal law’