Contemporary Moral Problems Chapter: Immanuel Kant – The Categorical Imperative

Contemporary Moral Problems

Chapter: Immanuel Kant – The Categorical Imperative

Quote:

“It is impossible to conceive anything at all in the world, or even out of it, which can be taken as good without qualification, except a good will”.

What I expect to learn:

To learn what is the meaning of Categorical Imperative.

Review:

In this part of chapter Immanuel Kant shared some ideas and some important insight about The Categorical Imperative. Immanuel Kant is a German and he is the most important philosophers of all time. Have made also significant contributions to all areas of philosophy by writing books and one of his most important books are Critique of Pure Reason, Prolegomena to All Metaphysics, Critique of Practical Reason, Critique of Judgment, and the most important is the Foundational of the Metaphysics of Morals. He believes that our moral duty can be formulated in one supreme rule, the categorical imperative, from which all our duties can be derived. Of course as a human we all have a good will right? Kant taught that it is impossible to conceive anything at all in the world, or even out of it, which can be taken as good without qualification, except a good will.

What I learned:

What I’ve learned in this chapter is that good will can make this world better.

Integrative Questions:

1. What is good will?

2. What can make if we have good will?

3. What are the changes if all people will use good will properly?

4. What is Categorical imperative?

5. State the duties of good will to yourself?

Review Questions:

1. Explain Kant’s account of the good will.

- For him good will is the impossible to conceive in the world.

2. Distinguish between hypothetical and categorical imperatives.

- Categorical imperatives means that you instantly know what contains folder while hypothetical you can only know what it contains beforehand.

3. State the first formulation of the categorical imperative (using the notion of a universe law), and explain how Kant uses this rule to derive some specific duties toward self and others.

- “Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.”-He uses Universal law for the sake that good duties can be derived.

4. State the second version of the categorical imperative (using the language of means and ends). And explain it.

- “The end justifies the mean” – After the action you’ve done it can only be judged if what is the result of it.

Discussion Questions:

1. Are the two versions of the categorical imperative just different expressions of one basic rule, or are they two different rules? Defend your view.

- For me it is different because it has different actions and results.

2. Kant claims that an action that is not done from the motive of duty has no moral worth. Do you agree or not? If not, give some counterexamples.

- I agree.

3. Some commentators think that the categorical imperative (particularly the first formulation) can be used to justify nonmoral actions. Is this a good criticism?

- For me it is yes.

No Comments Yet

No comments yet.

Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI