The Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals by Kant is one of the most significant works in contemporary moral philosophy. Moral philosophy is understood as a concept concerned with looking for answers to problems associated with human morality. It acts as a basis of fundamental concepts of human morality. The only action that Kant believes it is morally wrong is lying. This essay will discuss Kant’s approach to morality, and it will point out the strengths and weaknesses of his arguments.
Throughout his work, Kant tries to answer the question “can suicide be justified as morally correct.” He tries to consider many ideas, but the most prevalent one was Categorical Imperative. Kant believes that Categorical Imperatives are used to determine morality because they provoke significant reasons for all our actions. To reach Categorical Imperatives, Kant begins by explaining that a good action is the one that is accomplished from duty and not from ulterior motives or inclination. In other words, an action is considered good if it is right, and if the person was doing it for the sake of duty and not because of feelings or instinct.
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Kant believes that incentives, situations, emotions, and outcomes cannot be used in making moral judgments. Many people may not agree with him, but, indeed, emotions and situations can never be considered as the basis for moral judgment because they are emotional and situational. They will never provide us with the actual decisions that we expect because others will not agree with the judgments universally. The universality separates the moral judgments and the statement of pleasure.
What is the role of happiness? This is another question that Kant tries to answer. He achieves his argument by differentiating pleasure and happiness. He claims that pleasure has a corrupting influence on humans because it is only about what one feels. On the other hand, happiness pleases our sensual and rational sides. To be happy is all about feeling good and feeling worthy of pleasure. Kant believes that we have a duty of finding happiness because it will lead to moral actions.
Kant believes that lying is morally unacceptable. He states that lying is ethically intolerable because when one lies, he treats his or her victim as a means to an end. Therefore, when we lie to someone, then the victim will be considered as a mean. Lying is ethically unacceptable because it will never be considered as a universal law. He states there are times people are allowed to lie. He gave an example of when a murderer asks for the location of the victim who is in your house. Kant claims that our duty is not to lie and so we should tell the murderer the truth.
One weakness with Kant’s moral requirement is the idea of treating human beings as ends and not lying even if they are murderers; this is not practical and overly demanding. Having a moral law to guide the actions of people is the way to go. If the standards of the moral law are reduced in relation to human nature, then it will negatively affect the idea of morality. Never lying is an impossible thing, and it is unjust to ask humans to follow expectations impossible to achieve. There are different types of lies; with intent to harm and helpful lies. People should be allowed to lie when the lie helps others. The consequences of the lie should be considered as important. For example, lying to a murderer and saving the life of the victim will lead to happiness.
