ST.

JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO

COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

Week 15 Deontological Ethics

Lesson Title Deontological ethics (Continuation)
Learning Discuss the Deontological ethics
Outcome(s)
Time Frame 3 hrs.

LEARNING INTENT!
Terms to Ponder

Ends - refers to purpose or goal.

Means - refers to ways to achieve something in relation to human

being.

Essential Content
Introduction. Here, we will expound the understanding of
Categorical imperative. As previously discussed, Kant's version
of duty-based ethics was based on something that he called 'the
categorical imperative' which he intended to be the basis of all
other rules (a 'categorical imperative' is a rule that is true in all
circumstances.) The categorical imperative comes in two
versions which each emphasize different aspects of the
categorical imperative. Kant is clear that each of these versions
is merely a different way of expressing the same rule; they are
not different rules.

Moral rules must be universalizable. This first formulation of

categorical imperative emphasizes the need for moral rules to
SCP-Ethics-108 | 1
 ST. JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

be universalizable. Always act in such a way that you can also

will that the maxim of your action should become a universal
law. To put this more simply: Always act in such a way that you
would be willing for it to become a general law that everyone
else should do the same in the same situation.

This means at least two things:

• if you aren't willing for the ethical rule you claim to be
following to be applied equally to everyone - including you
- then that rule is not a valid moral rule. I can't claim that
something is a valid moral rule and make an exception to
it for myself and my family and friends.

So, for example, if I wonder whether I should break a

promise, I can test whether this is right by asking myself
whether I would want there to be a universal rule that says 'it's
OK to break promises'.

Since I don't want there to be a rule that lets people break

promises they make to me, I can conclude that it would be
wrong for me to break the promise I have made.
• if the ethical rule you claim to be following cannot logically
be made a universal rule, then it is not a valid moral rule.
So, for example, if I were thinking philosophically I might
realise that a universal rule that 'it's OK to break promises in
order to get one's own way', would mean that no-one would ever
believe another person's promise and so all promises would
lose their value. Since the existence of promises in society
requires the acceptance of their value, the practice of promising
would effectively cease to exist. It would no longer be possible
to ‘break’ a promise, let alone get one’s own way by doing so.

SCP-Ethics-108 | 2
 ST. JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

Moral rules must respect human beings. Kant thought that all
human beings should be treated as free and equal members of
a shared moral community, and the second version of the
categorical imperative reflects this by emphasizing the
importance of treating people properly. It also acknowledges
the relevance of intention in morality. Act so that you treat
humanity, both in your own person and in that of another,
always as an end and never merely as a means. Kant is saying
that people should always be treated as valuable - as an end in
themselves - and should not just be used in order to achieve
something else. They should not be tricked, manipulated or
bullied into doing things. This resonates strongly with
disapproving comments such as "he's just using her", and it
underpins the idea that "the end can never justify the means".
Here are three examples of treating people as means and
not ends:
• treating a person as if they were an inanimate object
• coercing a person to get what you want
• deceiving a person to get what you want

Kant doesn't want to say that people can't be used at all; it may
be fine to use a person as long as they are also being treated as
an end in themselves.

The importance of Duty. Kant thought that the only good reason
for doing the right thing was because of duty - if you had some
other reason (perhaps you didn't commit murder because you
were too scared, not because it was your duty not to) then that
you would not have acted in a morally good way.

SCP-Ethics-108 | 3
 ST. JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

But having another reason as well as duty doesn't stop an

action from being right, so long as duty was the ‘operational
reason’ for our action. If we do something because we know it's
our duty, and if duty is the key element in our decision to act,
then we have acted rightly, even if we wanted to do the act or
were too scared not to do it, or whatever. Hence, do the right
thing for the right reason, because it is the right thing to do.

The Strengths and Weaknesses of Kant’s Moral Theory. Here, I

will share the strength and weakness of duty ethics.
Strengths
1. Not consequentialist – Kant easily shows the fatal flaw of
Utilitarianism – a bad act can have good consequences. Kant’s
theory doesn’t make this mistake.
2. Universal – Kant’s theory provides moral laws that hold
universally, regardless of culture or individual situations.
3. Clear – Kant’s theory gives us a system that a child could
understand. “Would you like it if someone did that to you? No?
Then don’t do it to someone else.”
4. Autonomy – Kant has the greatest respect for human dignity and
autonomy.
5. Rational – Kant is not swayed by emotion. His theory does not
allow us to show favouritism for friends. It is a purely rational
theory.
6. Human Rights – Kant’s theory provides a basis for Human
Rights. In 1948, the UN Declaration of Human Rights was agreed
by 48 countries & is the world’s most translated document,
protecting humans around the globe.
7. Equality and Justice – Kant’s theory provides the foundation for
modern conceptions of equality and justice.
SCP-Ethics-108 | 4
 ST. JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

8. International Law – Kant’s ethical theory underpins most UK and

many international laws. When Jack Kevorkian tried to defend
his killing of Thomas Youk, the judge limited the evidence he
could introduce, saying it didn’t matter if he intended to help Mr
Youk, or if Mr Youk wanted to die. What was important was the
act itself.
9. Objective – Kant’s theory gives objective standards, independent
of our own interests, cultural bias etc.
10. Duty – At first, it may seem better to act out of compassion.
However, it is possible to make bad choices out of love. Acting
out of duty is always right.
11. Reliable – A system of rules works, and everyone knows what
their obligations are. If you allowed people to break rules
because of consequences, or out of love, the legal system would
be a mess, and no-one would know what they ought to do.
12. Authority – It doesn’t make sense to say we ought to break
promises – if that was so, promises would mean nothing. This
makes Kant’s rules logical and reasonable, giving them a real
authority.
13. Ends in themselves – Kant’s respect for human life is being
challenged by changes in medical ethics, but many hold this as
the most important aspect of his theory.

Weaknesses
1. Consequences – There are some occasions when consequences
are so severe that many think it is better to break a rule than
allow awful things to happen.
2. Inflexible – You should be able to break an unhelpful rule if the
individual circumstances warrant it.

SCP-Ethics-108 | 5
 ST. JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

3. Lack of motivation – Realizing that something is irrational (like

illegally downloading music, for example) doesn’t give any
motivation to do the right thing
4. Conflicting duty – Sartre described a pupil torn between looking
after his mother in France or going to England to fight with the
Free French Forces. “I find myself drawn into a vicious circle.”
Which of the duties do I follow?
5. Absolute duty – Ross thinks we have an absolute duty when all
things have been considered, but individual duties cannot be
absolute – sometimes we have a duty to break a promise.
6. Moral Law – Some philosophers question the existence of the
moral law. Why should we believe that there is objective
morality?
7. Anthropocentric – According to Kant, non-human animals (and
certainly any non-rational creatures) have no intrinsic value.
Many environmentalists see this as dangerous and wrong.
8. Too vague – It is not clear how broad our application of the
Categorical Imperative should be. For example, my council
wants to collect rubbish every 2 weeks. I think this is contrary
to the will, as no rational person would want to have smelly
rubbish sitting around for so long. Is this really morally wrong?
9. Difficulty forming maxims – Mark ask if you have Jews hiding in
your attack. Which maxim are you universalizing? “Do not tell
lies” or “Do not expose others to violence”?
10. A priori – Some have criticized the claim that we work out our
duty a priori. Surely, we need to refer to experience to work out
what is right, particularly in modern medical ethics.
11. Unrealistic – Kant asks us to follow maxims as if they were
universal rules, but just because we act this way, it doesn’t mean
others will. For example, pacifism makes sense as a law of
nature, but if we chose to be pacifist, we would be a sitting duck
for any non-Kantians.
SCP-Ethics-108 | 6
 ST. JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

12. Unforgiving – Kant believed in retributive justice, ‘an eye for an

eye’. It doesn’t allow for mercy. Bentham believed punishment
should be rehabilitative – that it should make things better
rather than just get revenge.
13. Every situation is unique – Universal rules aren’t helpful in the
real world where every situation is different. If no two situations
are the same, morality should be relativist not absolutist.

SELF-SUPPORT: You can click the URL Search Indicator below to help you further understand the lessons.

Search Indicator

Duty-based ethics. (N. D.). Retrieved Nov. 13, 2020 from

http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction/duty_1.shtml

Fernadez, Apolinar Henry. Ethics: Deciding what’s right and wrong. SMKC
PrintShoppe. 2018.

Kantian Duty Based (Deontological). (2013). Retrieved Nov. 16,

2020 from https://sevenpillarsinstitute.org/kantian-
duty-based-deontological-ethics/

Stanford encyclopedia of Philosophy. Deontlogical ethics.

(N. D.). Retrieved Nov. 14, 2020 from
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ethics-deontological/

SCP-Ethics-108 | 7
 ST. JOHN PAUL II COLLEGE OF DAVAO
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT
Physically Detached Yet Academically Attached

Strengths And Weaknesses: Kant. (2009). Retrieved Nov. 17, 2020 from
https://peped.org/philosophicalinvestigations/strengths-and-
weaknesses-kant/

SCP-Ethics-108 | 8