Kantian Duty Ethics: The Categorical Imperative

Kantian Duty Ethics Everything a person does is governed by a moral code or principle of behavior. There are people who do not agree with things done by other people, and vice versa. Someone who runs a business might decide to charge customers extra to increase profits. That person can understand that what they are doing is wrong, but follows his moral code of “whatever the customers doesn’t know, won’t hurt them.” That person can increase profits by 10% by doing so, but runs the risk of losing their business if ever caught. And then you have someone who puts their customers first and would never dare to do any harm to anyone because they wouldn’t like if someone did that to them. This is known as a deontological moral theory of Kantian duty

He believed that there was a supreme principle of morality, which he referred to it as the Categorical Imperative. The Categorical Imperative determines what our moral duties are and is a guide for testing rules. It states, “Always act so that you can consistently will that the maxim of your action become a universal law for all humankind. As in, before you act, consider the maxim or principle on which you are acting; what are you doing and why are you doing it. Unfortunately, this rule fails for other cases and is not a reliable way to learn the morality of actions. So another alternative would be to use the Golden Rule. The Golden Rule is a direct application that tells you to treat others as you would like to be treated. Kant identifies how the Golden Rule makes morality depend on a person’s desires. But, the Golden Rule also fails to give us guidance on self-regarding actions. So Kant made a goal to identify the ultimate principle of

To understand this principle, you need to understand the meaning of three things: humanity, ends, and means. Kant does not refer humanity to Homo sapiens, but to all rational and autonomous human animals. Kant argued that everyone, rationally and autonomy, is owed a level of respect. Treating someone as an end means treating them with the respect they deserve. And treating someone as a means is dealing with them so that they help you achieve one of your goals. In the book The Fundamentals of Ethics, it list a great example of a plumber coming to your home to fix a broken water pipe in your home. And while this plumber is fixing the pipes, you decide to help him. Then, when he leaves, you still pay him the full amount. You are treating him as an end by respecting him as a human and treating him as a means by paying him for fixing your broken water pipe. You are using him to get him to fix your broken water pipe but he is also benefiting by you paying him for his