Kant’s Moral Philosophy

Introduction

Kant’s moral philosophy is also known as Kantian ethics. It is a type of a deontological theory, which is based on ethics. Immanuel Kant founded this deontological theory. Kant’s theory developed as a culmination to the enlightenment rationalism. The basic central idea of this theory is that the good will is the intrinsic quality of nature. Hence, if the action is morally good, maxim, it acts as the theory behind the duty to the moral law. Kant’s moral law gave birth to the idea of categorical imperative. According to the theory of Kant, it is an idea, which acts as a moral law applicable to all people, irrespective of what their wishes, and interests are. “Act only to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.” (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2008).

Kant’s theory has the unique quality of Kant’s formulation of moral law in the categorical imperative. The basic universal idea of Kant’s ethics reveals that in order to have permission to any action, the action needs to be applicable to all mankind without any disagreement. Moreover, this ethical theory states that human beings are not defined as beings who talks of an end but rather are an autonomous