Kant’s Categorical Imperative Essay

This paper tackles the categorical imperative theory of Immanuel Kant every bit good as its first and 2nd preparations and how they apply to a peculiar instance of unfaithfulness. Introduction In his Basis of the Metaphysics of Morals. Kant defines an imperative as any proposition that declares a certain action or inactivity to be necessary and practical ( Kant. 1993. p. 413 ) . The categorical jussive mood is a type of imperative which states what one ought to make under certain fortunes and it implies the moral demand that we should move straight and unconditionally in order to accomplish some terminal or intent ( p. 417 ) .

In the Groundwork. Kant distinguishes between the conjectural jussive mood and the categorical jussive mood. The conjectural imperative provinces that if one wants to make A. so he should make B. or he may take non to make B or even A ( p. 414 ) . On the other manus. the categorical jussive mood requires that if one wants to make A. so he truly ought to make B. It hence follows that making B is of an absolute necessity. is considered a moral responsibility. and is unconditioned ( p. 420 ) . An Ethical Situation and the Action Taken

The state of affairs that is to be considered for the analysis is that of a immature adult male who has a girlfriend and who one time swore to love her and merely her and non to rip off on her in whatever manner particularly by holding cracks with another miss. For many months he has kept this promise in order to do her happy and do the relationship work. However. one twenty-four hours this immature adult male merely happens to acquire to cognize one highly beautiful immature miss on Facebook. a miss who is more beautiful than his ain girlfriend judgment from the same criterions.

After a few secret exchanges of messages on the same societal networking site. the immature adult male meets up with her without stating anyone and they have a day of the month that ended up in a sexual brush. Evaluation of the Situation Based on the First Formulation For any imperative to be a categorical jussive mood or a true moral proposition. Kant proposes that this jussive mood should possess catholicity. This means that it must non concern itself with the peculiar physical inside informations and fortunes environing the present state of affairs. including the apparently most pressing instinctual demands of the person on which the ethical state of affairs is focused.

Kant therefore provinces that there is merely one categorical jussive mood and it is this: “Act merely harmonizing to that axiom whereby you can at the same clip will that it should go a cosmopolitan law” ( p. 421 ) . In the state of affairs. the immature adult male clearly does non obey the categorical jussive mood when he decides to interchange messages with the miss on Facebook and subsequently on run into up with her. If the immature adult male made a promise of trueness. so it is his moral responsibility to make so ( p. 422 ) .

This means that if the impression of assuring to be faithful to one’s lover and interrupting it is universalized. so. based on the first preparation of the categorical jussive mood. there would be no promises at all and no such thing as honorable curses between lovers. The immature adult male is hence. harmonizing to Kant. ne’er justified in the unfaithfulness that he committed. Evaluation of the Situation Based on the Second Formulation Another feature of the categorical jussive mood is that it should non merely be a rule but that it should besides be an terminal in itself. unlike a conjectural jussive mood on which many human moral determinations are based.

Therefore. if a conjectural jussive mood goes like. “If you want to make A. you should make B. ” the categorical jussive mood should travel like. “Do B. ” for making B is an terminal in itself and non a agencies to any other terminal like A. Kant therefore provinces. “Act in such a manner that you treat humanity…always at the same clip as an terminal and ne’er simply as a agency to an end” ( p. 428 ) . In our state of affairs. the immature adult male. based on the 2nd preparation. has clearly violated the categorical jussive mood and this misdemeanor lies in the immature man’s doing an curse of fidelity to his girlfriend in order to do her happy and to do the relationship work.

Harmonizing to the 2nd preparation. if you have made a promise in order to do person happy and to do the relationship work. so you are non moving out of moral responsibility ; because if you are. so you will hold made such a promise as an terminal in itself. The immature adult male should hold made the promise of trueness merely out of pure fear for promise itself in precisely the same manner as one decides to love non for the felicity of the other but for the interest of love itself. For Kant and the categorical jussive mood. true morality is making one’s moral responsibility without refering himself with the consequences ( p. 417 ) .

The immature adult male in the state of affairs tried to concern himself with the consequences. Owing to this. his promise was hence non strictly made and such a fact may hold even been the ground behind his subsequent immoral act. Conclusion Kant teaches us that an action is good and moral non because it is based on ground as what the positivists contend nor because it has good consequences as what the utilitarians say. but that it is done in obeisance to an interior sense of responsibility – the categorical jussive mood.

Harmonizing to this rule and based on the scenario presented. one should do a promise of love and maintain it because the fulfilment of a promise is cosmopolitan. One should besides maintain a promise of love non for any other ground such as the felicity of the other but for the interest of the promise itself. for true moral responsibility is self-sufficing and does non concern itself with consequences. Mentions Kant. I. ( 1993 ) . Anchoring for the Metaphysics of Morals. Translated by James W. Elington. 3rd erectile dysfunction. Capital of indiana: Hackett Publishing Company. Inc. . 413-428.