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Kant’s categorical imperatives
Kant’s categorical imperatives
Critical analysis of ethical dilemmas
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In Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals, Kant does not presume to establish moral laws; he posits the basis for moral law itself. Through this process, Kant introduces the opposing concepts of heteronomy, laws provided externally for the individual, and autonomy, laws established via the application of reason. The implication arises that autonomy under Kant's definition is freedom, and that autonomy is a requisite for moral actions. To fully develop an understanding of this relationship it is crucial to deconstruct and integrate his notions of: will, duty, maxim, and imperative. Humans have the unique ability to perceive natural law, and imagine or will those forces to be different.
After all the reading and carefully thinking about what Mr. Lasken had requested from his physician it left me with the decision that Dr. Brody should not grant Mr. Lasken request to help end his life. In my discussion, I spoke about the Kantian Ethics and how it applies to the dilemma Dr. Brody was up against. To help end someone’s life purposely, regardless of their involvement, should not be done in the hands of someone else nor should anyone be placed in that situation. I considered both views, and found no favor into helping Mr. Lasken end his life and would be wrong on Dr. Brody behalf. As a physician you are sworn in by Hippocratic Oath and under that you are required in doing right by the patients; make sure all possible attempts
In every day life, we face many situations that require a moral decision. We have to decide what is right and what is wrong? Not always is this an easy task thus, it seems important to analyze how we make our moral decisions. I will start with an analysis of how we make decisions in general
Decisions are made constantly, every second of every day. They may be whether to buy a soda or water from the store, or whether to go out with friends and have fun or to stay home and finish the work that has been put off right up to the deadline. All decision making can be broken down into one of two categories, moral and logical. While this works in theory, in practical application, the difference between moral and logical decisions is more of a gradient rather than a line. The point of this essay is not to provide a guide to decisions, nor to give practical advice.
Muhammad’s belief and early development of Islam were influence by Judaism and Christianity that he learned on his travels as a merchant and use some of their idea for a monotheism God. The fundamental tenets of Islam were: Allah is the one and only true god, the recognition of other gods leads to bad punishments and Allah will bring his judgment on the world, and he rewarding the good and punishing the bad. After Muhammad died, the Islamic community faced a struggle because Muhammad left no one to be his heir to lead the people.
Deontology which is derived from the Greek words Deon (meaning obligation/duty) and logia (science/study) combined to be also known as duty or rule-based ethics or the study of duties or obligations. It is a branch of ethical theories that deals with ethics of conduct, which theories are based on the sort of actions people must perform. It is based on non-consequentialism where the ends do not justify the means and thus deontology is an approach to ethics in which a sense of duty or principle prescribes the ethical decision (Preston, 2007). Deontology affirms duties must be obeyed regardless of the consequences. The theory of Deontology has its flaws as well and this essay will present three criticisms of deontology namely that deontology relies on moral absolutes, allows acts that make the world a worse place, two permissible duties that are right can conflict with each other and will demonstrate these flaws with relevant case studies and dilemmas.
The final ethical theory is Kant’s deontology. Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher who admire the stoics for their dedication to performing their duties and playing their part. He based his theory on duties, obligations, and rights. Its main focus is that everyone has an inherited right. It highlights the importance of respecting a person autonomy.
Life or Death Who chooses death over life? Sometimes we have to make this decision over a loved one when there is no hope for their recovery. It would be incredibly hard to make this life or death decision on another human being and twice as hard when it is someone we love. The author discusses the argument of this controversial topic of sustaining life at any cost or dying peacefully as an ethical issue. An ethicist, a person who specializes in or writes on ethics, can provide valuable discernment with respect to right and wrong motives or actions.
Ethics and the search for a good moral foundation first drew me into the world of philosophy. It is agreed that the two most important Ethical views are from the world’s two most renowned ethical philosophers Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill. In this paper, I will explore be analyzing Mill’s Greatest Happiness Principle and Kant’s Categorical Imperative. In particular, I want to discuss which principle provides a better guideline for making moral decisions. And which for practical purposes ought to be taught to individuals.
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.
In James Rachels’s “What is Morality”, Rachels dissects the idea of a minimum conception and examines various moral dilemmas. His idea of minimum conception is not to narrow down morality, but to narrow down the aspects or “cores” of morality. Rachels believes that this can be used develop a universal morality that can apply to every situation. In second part of the article, Rachels presents three examples of real life moral dilemmas and two opposing views for each situation. This examples touch on the issue of euthanasia, but have different purposes and consequences.
Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill are two of the most notable philosophers in normative ethics. This branch of ethics is based on moral standards that determine what is considered morally right and wrong. This paper will focus on Immanuel Kant’s theory of deontology and J.S. Mill’s theory of utilitarianism. While Mill takes a consequentialist approach, focused on the belief that actions are right if they are for the benefit of a majority, Kant is solely concerned with the nature of duty and obligation, regardless of the outcome. This paper will also reveal that Kantian ethics, in my opinion, is a better moral law to follow compared to the utilitarian position.
The statement that “We should never use a good person as a means to an end” is false. Kant states that the Principle of Humanity is to always treat a human being as an end, and never as a mere means. Kant also believes that you should always respect rational people and should never use anyone or break moral laws no matter what. It is true Kant ’s Principle of Humanity is found under categorical imperative, but categorical imperative is a moral obligation that cannot be unkept no matter what the circumstances may be.
When France fell under the Nazi occupation, Andre and Magda Trocme did all in their power to save Jewish people from the vicious hands of the Nazis. As the Pastor of a town, Andre encouraged the people to give shelter for Jewish refugees. Even when the Vichy authorities order him to provide a list of the Jews in the town, he refused and said: "We do not know what a Jew is. We only know human beings" (Hallie, 1979, p.103). Was his lie just?
One of the most regarded ethical theories in contemporary period is deontological ethics. From historical point of view, contemporary or recent refers to the early or middle part of the twentieth century, and even the late nineteenth century. There are some features of these contemporary ethical theories that appear to express relatively modern points of view. One of which is the emphasis on plurality or multiplicity and relativity; another feature is the denial of absolutes and universality. Theories in this era focus on the importance of lower-level rules, judgements or decisions that are said to test, enhance or even replace principles.