PHIL 2120 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Teleology, Deontological Ethics, Universalizability

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Philosophy
• Course: PHIL 2120
• Professor: Peter Eardley

Document Summary

Immanuel kant, groundwork of the metaphysics of morals. Immanuel kant: kant is one of the most important thinkers in the western tradition, b. 1724, k nigsberg, prussia: d. 1804 in k nigsberg, wrote on ethics, epistemology and aesthetics, among other topics, best known works are the critique of pure reason, critique of practical. Reason, fundamental principles of the metaphysics of morals: kant"s main ethical work is the fundamental principles of the. I. e. , moral duty must be done solely for its own sake ( duty for duty"s sake ) Sidebar note that in addition to the categorical imperative, there exist what kant calls (non-moral) hypothetical imperatives. Hypothetical imperatives: maxims that express desires/wants/needs in terms of a means-end relationship: e. g. Imperative is the overarching/basic principle by which we test or measure all other moral imperatives. If you come up with a moral principle that cannot become a universal law without contradiction, then you should not act on that principle.