Immanuel Kant is one of the moral philosophers who established that human shave a moral obligation to each other, as they are rational beings. The kantian categorical imperative is one of the fundamental moral theories that Kant applied to the concept of lying. More often than not individuals engage in lies for their own benefit as telling the truth would be disastrous. Immanuel Kant was opposed to lying as it went against one's moral duties and obligations. Immanuel Kant categorical imperative indicates that lying in all of its forms is wrong no matter its short-term benefits. Kant came up with the concept of absolute prohibition to lying as lying is viewed as using other individuals as mere means to a selfish end.
Immanuel Kant established that human beings have several duties and obligation to fellow humans and lying conflicts with these moral duties. An individual who engages in lying foregoes the provisions of the categorical imperative, which reiterates on the need to fulfill one's moral obligations (Pallikkathayil, 2017). Imperative as captured in the categorical imperative theory points on something an individual needs to do and telling the truth is one of the imperatives. Kant established that the imperative to tell the truth matches the universality concept, which means that telling the truth is universally accepted. If individuals all over the world lied then it would reach a time when no one would listen to what individuals have to say (Misselbrook, 2013). Kant felt that lying cannot be universalized and as such, it is immoral and should not be exercised under any situation.
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Kant was right in establishing that lying is wrong in all of its forms. The reason for this stance is the fact that lies do more harm than good especially when the truth comes. It may be true to think that lying can help individuals to meet their goals but this motivation is selfish as it uses people as a means to an end. Individuals who lie from time to time will lose their credibility and no one will be interested in what they have to say (Dimmock and Fisher, 2017). For example, a person may lie that he is sick and as such cannot go to the office. At first, the employer and fellow employees would believe it but if the person becomes a perpetual liar, even when he is truly sick, no one will care about it. For this reason, one should always strive to tell the truth as it is morally right to do so.
References
Dimmock, M., & Fisher, A. (2017). Ethics for A-Level: For AQA Philosophy and OCR Religious Studies. Cambridge: Open Book Publishers.
Misselbrook, D. (2013). Duty, Kant, and Deontology. British Journal of General Practice, 63 (609), 211.
Pallikkathayil, J. (2017). The Truth about Deception. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 98 (1), 147-166.
