About the lecture

In this module, we introduce the concept of a moral theory and think about what distinguishes deontological moral theories from other kinds of moral theories (e.g. virtue ethics, utilitarianism). After that, we introduce the deontological theory of Immanuel Kant, focusing in particular on his conception of the will and his distinction between acting from duty and acting in accordance with duty (i.e. doing the right thing, but not for the right reasons).

About the lecturer

Iain Law is a Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Birmingham. His main interests are in meta-ethics, applied ethics and ethical theory, and he is currently working on papers in moral theory, moral psychology, the philosophy of medicine and applied ethics.