Kant’s Ethics of Dignity and Freedom Essay

Immanuel Kants honorable doctrine contends that virtuousity is grounded from deductive reasoning. In his Groundwork for Metaphysics of honourables, Kant introduced the main bring out of his honourable Philosophy, the level Imperative (Singer, 1993). The Rationale of Kantian ethics is to seduce estimable principles in accordance with rational procedures which includes duty (Singer, 1993). Kant grounds his chaste philosophy on the question what I ought to do?, he therefore attempts to determine the fundamental principles that humans should adopt. Kant fully furnishes his ethical claims in a subjective approach regarding what is good for man.Criticism of Previous Ethical ThoriesIn his brush up of Pure Reason, Immanuel Kant primarily makes a connection between rationalism and empiricism. Conversely, Kant counters David Humes empiricism, stating that although all knowledge begin with experience, it does non necessarily squiffy that it all comes from experience. In his realiz ation of Humes dubious conclusions, Kant dwelled on the predication that all ideas ar representations of sensory experience (Guyer and Wood, 1998). To counter Hume, Kant attempted to demote another means to derive cause and effect without dependence from a posteriori knowledge (Guyer and Wood, 1998).Kant grounds his perspective of freedom as autonomy, and morality from the beliefs of famed French enlightenment philosopher, Jean Jacque Rousseau. Rousseau believes that freedom is not simply world unbound from any legal philosophy, but by the laws that argon, in a sense, do by the exclusive. Hence, Kant primarily conforms to the idea that freedom bypasses the negative notion of creation free from influences that are governed by elements outside the self (Johnson, 2004).Kant, although influenced by positivist Rene Descartes, counters the latters perspective on the existence of God base on reason, that due to restrictions brought about by reason, no star weed really know if there really is a God. Kant solidifies his claims by stating that justifiable knowledge must be grounded from a reality encountered solely by human experience (Singer, 1993). In his explanation, Kant asserts that all the preparations for reason in what whitethorn be deemed as pure philosophy, are directly adressed to three problems God, nous and freedom (Guyer and Wood, 1998). Kant neither denies nor accepts the existence of God, he, however, argues against the rationalist perspective of God and sees the Christian scriptures as a worldly narrative which can be concord upon as a representation of morality (Singer, 1993).Autonomy and HeteronomyAutonomy and its principles are important in Kants moral philosophy, this is due to the fact that the pedestal of the actions are based on internal motives. In this context, the one who acts (the Agent) does it in an autonomous manner since the agent is the only key holder to the prat of the action. Heteronomy, for Kant is an element in the can of a moral act that are driven by external factors (Singer, 1993). A person then who acts downstairs the influence of outside forces is not acting freely, therefore, that person is acting heteronomously.Categorical ImperativeKant grounds the foundations of the princple of his moral philosophy from the denial of principles that are non-universalizable. Kant formulates this creation as a demand which he calls the vapid arrogant (Singer, 1993). Kants formulation of the matte imperative claims that Act only according to that axiom whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law (Singer, 1993). This sentiment is the core of Kants ethics and is the understructure for the maxims or fundamental principles an individual may advocate. Kants categorical imperative may also be viewed as an end in itself, set forth as a means that only serves the fulfillment of the interest itself and not to any other purpose. Immanuel Kant holds that the principles of rea son governs the moral law and that irrelevant factors much(prenominal) as what would make people happy, is the basis of morality and the moral law (Guyer and Wood, 1998). Kant defining Rational beings as people who are capable of moral deliberation who can choose to act by fundamental principles that necessitate universality. It is in this framework that Kant formulated the Kingdom of Ends and furthered his Categorical Imperative, implying the term res publica as a group of rational beings bound by customary laws.Kant argues that inclination to the categorical imperative bequeaths an individual with autonomous ethical choice. The basis for much(prenominal) argument is on Kants assertion of the bond between moral law and autonomy. In his presupposition, Kant suggests that practical will is bound by the categorical imperative through the simple fact of reason, and uses such belief to postulate that our wills are autonomous (Johnson, 2004).The essence of Kants moral philosophy is quite ironic due to the primary intentions that are never achieved. The set-back point of criticism is that Kant, like many other scholars are in pursuit of a universal truth, given the textual fact that Kants ideas are based on his own assumptions, it is unimaginable that Kant is unable to come through concrete defense of autonomy of the will in accordance to the categorical imperative.ReflectionIn reference to his categorical imperative, Kant provokes individuals to act according to such principles that ends to the universal law (Singer, 1993). This categorical imperative, and his moral beliefs for that matter, are based on subjective thinking, another irony on the true aims of his moral philosophy. In this regard, I think it is safe to connote that Kants undertaking of how an individual should think only provides signs of the conventional human flaw, the fear of elements and concepts that the human understanding cannot fully comprehend.Personally, I think Kants suggestion reg arding compliance to the categorical imperative provides freedom in ethical decision making is incomprehensible, since one of his underlying concepts is rationality and morality (Singer, 1993). I feel that Kants moral philosophy may result to individuals to be narrow-minded since they only matter the reasons in doing actions and overlook the possible outcomes that may have destructive tendencies. I myself cannot see how to live in a world of subjectivity and apathy. If Kant wrote his ethical theories to burst out personal opinion, he should have been a journalist, quite a than a scholar who cannot live up to the principles of his own philosophy.ReferencesJohnson, R. (2004). Kants Moral Philosophy. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved 12 February 2008 from http//plato.stanford.edu/entries/kant-moral/Aut Singer, P. (Ed.) (1993). Blackwell companions to philosophy A companion to ethics. Malden, MA Blackwell Publishing.Kant, I., Guyer, P. & Wood, A. (Eds.). (1998). Critiqu e of Pure Reason. Cambridgeshire Cambridge UP.