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Arguments Against Deontology

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Deontology: Right vs. Wrong When it comes to talking about the moral and social problems of veracity, there are many different positons that one can defend. When researching and doing readings from class, I found it difficult to pick a side to defend; however, that was until I reread Immanuael Kant’s “On a Supposed Right to Tell Lies from Benevolent Motives”. That reading allowed me to find one of the theories of veracity which fits closest to my own personal morals concerning the matter of veracity: deontology. Deontology is an approach to ethics that focuses on the rightness or wrongness of the actions themselves instead of focusing on the rightness or wrongness of the consequences or the character and habits of the actor. The theory of deontology allows a person to really consider their actions before blindly acting on impulses. Taking a closer look at the rightness or wrongness of one’s actions BEFORE they are acted upon is how I have lived my life ever since I was a child and will continue to be the way I live my life. …show more content…

Kant states that we have a perfect duty not to act by maxims that result in logical contradictions. There are also imperfect duties, these are still based on pure reason, but allow for interpretation on how they are performed. However, because these decisions are based off the preferences of mankind they are still not nearly as strong as perfect duties, but are still morally binding. The categorical imperative seems to be similar to the golden rule of “Do not impose on others what you do not wish on

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833 Words | 4 Pages

Kantians believe that the rightness or wrongness of an action does not depend on the consequences, but on whether they fulfill a duty. They must act in a way that will produce the greatest overall amount of good in the world. In this view there is no obligation to give money to a homeless person, but it is the right thing to do. Kant’s supreme moral principle is the categorical imperative. The categorical imperative is a moral law that is unconditional for all agents because of intrinsic value.

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1985 Words | 8 Pages

Categorical Imperative and Duties Kant divides duties into two groups- duties towards others and duties towards self. They are further subdivided into strict and meritorious duties. Lets consider these duties one by one in light of Categorical Imperative. Strict Duties to others : Consider a person is in need of money.

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873 Words | 4 Pages

It was hot. I stood on the side of a dusty gravel road of southeast Texas feeling the sun press down on my neck and back. Underneath my helmet, sweat was slowly collecting on my forehead and moving down my cheeks as if to escape from the sweltering heat. The sweat left streaks in the camouflage paint that covered my face. From a distance, I thought my face must look like river tributaries, such as those seen from space.

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1202 Words | 5 Pages

To begin with, this theory relies on moral absolutes which can be defined as actions that are entirely right or entirely wrong. Deontologists cannot consider the consequences of their actions, even if the consequences of a particular action bring about more harm than the act itself. Deontology theory says that certain types of actions are either absolutely right or wrong, but provides no way in which to distinguish which action may be right or wrong and thus duties and principles can conflict (Preston, 2007). For instance,

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154 Words | 1 Pages

Autonomy is a person ability to lead a self-directing life. Unlike egoism and utilitarianism, Kant’s deontology looks into how the information was gather to determine if its ethical to use. Because of the focus on how the information was gather Kant ’s deontology would consider the using of the information as unethical.

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280 Words | 2 Pages

Deontology argues that they are not the consequences of actions to define them but the reason for which the action was carried out in the first place. Consequentialism, on the other

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316 Words | 2 Pages

Immanuel Kant’s categorical imperative is essentially that you should act how you would want everyone else to act towards all other people. It says to act according to the maxim that you would wish all other rational people to follow, as if it were a universal law. This is similar to many maxims held by different religions: do unto others as you would have done unto you. Although, Kant does not justify his philosophy with religion, but rather with reason and logic. He believes that it is logical to want to do good always.

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863 Words | 4 Pages

Kant is remembered in ethics for his deontological ethical theory where he states that an action is morally justifiable if an actor is bound by his obedience to act by a set of laws. Kant’s ethics thus states that one “must” always conform to a set of rules hence at other times called “categorical imperative.” According

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1536 Words | 7 Pages

The distinction between right and wrong has been a matter of discussion for centuries, whether expressed through philosophical essays, social organisation or artistic creation. Deontological ethics is a philosophical theory which dissects acts into right and wrong on the basis of the adherence of an act to a specific rule. One of the many formulations of deontology is Kantianism, a view introduced by Immanuel Kant, which argues that the basis for morality are motives for one’s action rather than the consequences of it and searches a justification for one’s duty to behave in a certain manner. One of the critiques or counter positions of Kant’s ethics is Sartrean existentialism as it denies the possibility of an absolute moral system and focuses on the individual morality rather than social one and bases on one’s commitment to his chosen values. Yet drawing parallels between the two positions is far from impossible, despite Sartre’s strong opposition to Kantian moral theory.

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Deontologists on the other-hand focus on the moral aspects of the action, not the consequences, believing some acts are always wrong, regardless of the outcome. A most basic example is lying, which deontologists find totally

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1023 Words | 5 Pages

The theory of deontology states we are morally obligated to act in accordance with obvious set of principles and rules regardless of results. Deontological ethics focuses on duties, and rights. The term deontological was coined by the utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham, who described it as “knowledge of what is right or proper” Bentham thought that deontology points in the direction of principle of utility. But contemporary philosophers use the term deontological to indicate a contrast with the utilitarian focus on the consequences of action. Instead of focusing on consequences, deontological ethics focus on duties and obligation: things we ought to do regardless of the consequences.

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926 Words | 4 Pages

Another concept in Kant’s Grounding of the Metaphysic of Morals is perfect duty. Perfect duties as those that are not flexible; there are no exceptions of these duties. According to Kant, “Not committing suicide is an example of a perfect duty to oneself” (30). There are no exceptions to allow a person to commit suicide and it should never

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1515 Words | 7 Pages

Decisions about right and wrong fill each and every day. Turmoil exists due to deciding if Deontology, where one acts based on the right motives, or if Utilitarianism, where one should act in a way that would produce the best results and consequences, should govern decisions and their morality. However, I believe Deontology, which is reason and duty based, serves as the superior way to dictate morality. In this paper, I will explain both the principles of Deontology and Utilitarianism, discuss the superior aspects of Deontology as compared to Utilitarianism, as well as grapple with objections to Deontology. While both ethical frameworks contain parts of ideologies that could be seen as valid, Kant’s theory on Deontology holistically remains

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1423 Words | 6 Pages

‘Ethical theories are the rules and principles that determine right and wrong for any given situation’ according to Crane and Matten (2004:76). Its contribution is either relativists which is what is right or wrong relying on the moral norms of our society such as, our culture or absolutists which is deciding what is right or wrong regarding the act, for instance, murder. However, absolutists is divided into Consequentialists (Teleological) which consists of Utilitarianism and ethical egoism and the Non-consequential (Deontological) which consists of divine command theories, Kant’s ethics of duty, virtue ethics, justice approach and the rights approach. The contribution to our understanding of ethical problems offered by 3 different ethical theories: Kant’s ethics of duty, the ethics of right and the ethics of justice. Firstly, Kant’s ethics of duty is defined by the German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804).

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1439 Words | 6 Pages

The teaching profession naturally is context-based and full of uncertainty (Edward, et al, 2002; Murray, 1996) that a teacher has to entertain in a flexible and open-mind manner. That is why Larrivee (2006), Daloglu (2001) and Darling-Hamond (2006) claimed that it is almost impossible to manage all ‘learning engagements to teach’ at the time of training in the teacher education. Reflection, particularly critical reflection, helps learners to realize being experienced, innovator, participant observers, continuous experimenters, adapters, action researchers, problem solvers, clinical inquirers, self-evaluator, political craftsmen, etc. in such a way that it ensures continuous professionalism in teaching (Tom, 1985; Zeichner, 1983), which is useful

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