Kant, the Good Will, and Acting From Duty

Kantian Deontological Ethics

In this course, Dr Iain Law (University of Birmingham) thinks about Kantian deontological ethics, one of the three main normative ethical theories alongside utilitarianism and virtue ethics. We begin in the first module by introducing the concept of a moral theory and outlining what distinguishes deontological theories from other kinds of moral theories, before introducing the deontological theory of Immanuel Kant more specifically. After that, we consider Kant's distinction between acting from duty and acting (merely) in accordance with duty. In the third module, we think about the difference between hypothetical and categorical imperatives, before turning in the fourth and fifth modules to *the* Categorical Imperative, as Kant described it. In the fourth module, we focus on the first formulation of the Categorial Imperative (sometimes known as the Formula of Universality) and in the fifth, we focus on the second formulation (sometimes known as the Formula of Humanity). Finally, in the sixth module, we think about some potential objections to Kantianism, including the limitations of the Formula of Universality, clashes of duties, and its lack of interest in what might ordinarily be considered important motives, e.g. compassion, empathy.

Kant, the Good Will, and Acting From Duty

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).