Kantian Ethics Flashcards
Kant’s general views on God
He did believe in God and the after life but was suspicious of relying on religious doctrine.
Absolutist
To Kant, moral law was not hypothetical, there are universal maxims that must always apply.
Kant’s general views on morality
Morality is objective. It is framed by concepts and categories, and can be deduced through reason, rather than experience or emotion.
Good people follow moral law through good will and duty. By doing this we will experience “the good life”.
Summum bonum
There is a supreme good which brings happiness to all, which humans are free to pursue due to our ability to be rational.
Reason
Reason is universal whereas experience can be wrong as it is merely a perception based on senses.
Duty
Our duty, according to Kant, is “to do good to others, where one can, is a duty”.
Doing good because you get an inner sense of pleasure by spreading joy is not truly moral, however this does not mean it is wrong.
Good will
Duty for duty’s sake.
Doing good because you get an inner sense of pleasure by spreading joy is not truly moral, however this does not mean it is wrong.
It is not virtuous.
Our moral obligation is that we “ought” to do something.
Specific duties
Kant developed a system of developing moral judgements by establishing specific duties to ourselves and others.
These include:
Strive for self perfection and the well-being of others
Pursue the greater good, not one’s own happiness
Innate right to freedom
Duty not to destroy ourselves
Duty not to make false promises
Avoid drunkenness
Right to private property and ownership.
Specific duties and the state
The state should protect our specific duties (human rights)
Knowledge
We have knowledge prior to experience.
This knowledge is a universal feature.
“though all our knowledge begins with experience, it does not follow that it arises out of experience”
Analytic statements
Truth within themselves.
They are judgements of clarification.
Synthetic statements
They must be tested for the truth, and if they are true it adds new information to the subject.
Moral judgements as propositions
Moral propositions are synthetic. They bring additional information from outside of the experience. This additional information is the moral law that reason reveals. You have to look at what people ought to do, not just what they actually do.
Moral knowledge is therefore a priori synthetic.
The hypothetical imperative
It commands behaviour for an end. You have to follow the command if you pursue the desired result.
Based on “if”.
This is WRONG, according to Kant.
We should look to the moral law which binds us unconditionally.
The actions would be good simply as means to something else.
The categorical imperative
This states that you ought to do something regardless of ones particular desires and inclinations and do not depend on the expected results and consequences of an action. By using our reason we can recognise that it is our duty to act accordingly.
The action is represented as good in itself.
The universal law principle
Our moral behaviour must be consistent through out our life and everyone else’s.
It must apply to any situation or culture.
Maxims that could not be universalised would be self-defeating.
e.g. lying is always wrong as it always brings about harm.
General laws for everyone eliminate self interest and develop good will.
Treat humans as ends in themselves
Human individuals are ends and we should not treat them as means to an end. We should not treat people as minorities or as an end to our own happiness. We should regard the intrinsic quality of human beings.
Act as if you live in a kingdom of ends
We must imagine the happiest world we can when searching for universal laws. We are all rational agents so will coincide, and any disagreements can be solved by rational arguments.
The 3 postulates
“must be assumed to exist”
Freedom + summum bonum
Immortality
God
Freedom + summum bonum
Autonomy.
We must have freedom to use reason and make moral choices.
Summum bonum will be achieved if everyone considers universal laws.
Freedom is the highest degree of life, to choose moral law over all our desires. We should act consistently rather than impulsively. Freedom ensures moral responsibility.
Immortality
People who follow moral duty and are not rewarded in this life will be rewarded in the next. It ensures correct happiness.
Sacrificial acts of duty are possible.
God
He is implied. We are created rational beings - he is the creator There is an 'absolute law' for God. Heavens = god's rewards. Reason>revelation.
Strengths of Kantian ethics
When tested, the categorical imperative is successful for some maxims.
Seeks to raise the status of human beings and avoids selfish rule-making.
Doesn’t require a religious belief but still carries hope of an afterlife.
Easy to apply
Egalitarian
Consistent - no one is favoured.
It honours respect and dignity.
Weaknesses of Kantian ethics
Many selfish or cruel maxims can be permitted using the categorical imperative.
Some people have a better ability to reason than others, does this make them more intrinsically valuable?
Inflexible - doesn’t regard situations, making is less useful in the modern world.
