Similarities Between Kant And Mill

Two of the most well respected philosophers of their time Kant and Mill share their views as different as they might be. Kant’s basis is categorical imperative. In the writings of Grounding for the Metaphysics of morals it is described as “act only according to the maxim whereby you can… will that it should become a universal law” (Kant, 30). The other main point that Kant makes in his agreement is that we should not treat people as means but as ends themselves (36). Mill has a different stance, he states his principle in Utilitarianism “Greatest Happiness Principle”. This states that an action should be done as long as it provides pleasure with freedom from pain (Mill, 186). We will see each of these well respected views in farther depth.

He is very anti-lying and shows us this in Metaphysical Principles of Virtue, which he provides us with a whole section on the topic. He bases it on the idea of categorical imperative. This is the idea that if one person does an action then everyone does the action. This is not to be taking literal. If this was applied to lying then there would be no trust and communication would become impossible and communities would fall apart. We see an example of his strong view on the topic; we see an example of this when he says “lying is the greatest violation of duty to himself man’s” (Kant, 90). He also breaks down lying into two categories internal and external. Internal being the worst because you are treating yourself as a mean and not an end. He also thinks that lying takes away a man’s dignity in the eyes of others and himself. These statements show how strongly Kant felt about lying and that one should ever do it.

Mills view is one that could be applied to more modern day ethics on common grounds. While he thinks that lying is unethical but you can lie in very rare times. Over time it degrades character and creates distrust, which is bad for both the individual and the community. He seems to base his theory off the Greatest Happiness principle. If the lie brings the greatest good it would be in the best interest to lie. This is in very rare circumstances. If this was done a lot then your integrity as