Categorical Imperative
According to the German Philosopher Immanuel Kant
(1724-1804) the normative evaluation of our moral obligations ultimately rests on a single, absolute,
objective moral principle called the Categorical Imperative. This principle is
given three distinct formulations by Kant in the Groundwork of the Metaphysics of
Morals:
- Act only on that maxim (i.e., moral principle) whereby thou canst at the same time will
that it should become a universal law. (Only act on a moral principle you would want others to act on.)
- So act as to treat humanity, whether in thine own person or in that of any other, in every
case as an end withal, never as a means only. (Always treat persons as ends, never as means to an end.)
- The will of every rational being [is] a universally legislative will. (All rational agents are morally autonomous.)
Kant considers this imperative to be categorical
since it is good in-itself, not as a means to some other end. Any
moral duty or obligation which is considered good in that it secures something
else is properly considered an Hypothetical Imperative. For example, when a Consequentialist
claims that a particular principle is right because it produces the greatest amount of happiness, they are
exercising an Hypothetical Imperative. For Kant, to be truly moral, a principle must be good-in-itself,
good for its own sake regardless of the consequences.
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