Normative Theories: Deontology and Kants Ethics

1
Normative Theories Deontology and Kants Ethics

• Normative Theories of Ethics and The Groundwork
  of the Metaphysics of Morals

2
Consequentialism vs. Non-Consequentialism

• Is it ever immoral to do something that has the
  best possible consequences?
• No Consequentialism
• Yes Non-consequentialist theories

3
Review Consequentialism

• Utilitarianism might be too simple are
  consequences all that matter?
• It may be too demanding should we spend all our
  time helping others?
• We can have stronger and weaker duties (not
  harming consumers vs. providing daycare for
  workers).

4
Deontology is Non-Consequentialist

• Deontology is a rule-based ethics
• Kants theory is the most famous deontological
  theory.
• He wanted a system based only on (a priori or
  non-empirical) reason.

5
The Good Will

• Consider good-samaritan laws one must try their
  best to help
• Kant cares that ones heart is in the right
  place.
• Nothing is good in itself except the good will
  consider the fact that Hitler was intelligent was
  that a good thing?
• Will is the human capacity to act from the right
  principle (from the moral law).

6
Duty not Inclination (or anything else)

• Consider a clerk who returns undue change
• Perhaps she wants to comply with the law, or
  promote business.
• Her action is only good if she is trying to be
  good and honest if she acts on the categorical
  imperative.

7
The Categorical Imperative

• We should always act such that we can will the
  maxim of our action to become a universal law.
• A maxim is a principle of action- the contractor
  who breaks a promise acts on the maxim that he
  will do so whenever this suits him.
• Should not contain a contradiction in principle
  or in the will if everyone broke promises
  whenever it suits them then promises would not
  exist.

8
No Contradictions

• Martin the contractor wills that people believe
  promises but also wills that he can break them
  whenever he wants.
• Universalizing this maxim he would be willing
  that promises be broken whenever it suits the
  promise-maker (if this is true, though, why
  should anyone accept promises?).

9
The Case of Lying and Suicide

• If a law allowed lying there could be no serious
  communication. There is a contradiction between
  a law that allows lying and one that promotes
  serious conversation.
• If self love allowed suicide it too would be
  inconsistent we can not destroy our selves and
  love our selves too.

10
Categorical vs. Hypothetical Imperatives

• Imperatives are commands or maxims.
• Hypothetical principles tell us what to do if we
  want a particular result (e.g. study if you want
  to get an A).
• Moral rules are not like that they hold
  unconditionally for all people regardless of
  consequences (e.g. you should be honest even if
  you do not care about doing well in business).

11
Universal Acceptability

• Each persons morality is self imposed.
• But, we are bound by reason and that is universal
  (what is true for me is also true for you).
• That is why we can ask if a rule that we are
  considering would be acceptable if all acted upon
  that rule!

12
An Important Insight

• What is right is not just what people actually do
  or accept, but what they rationally would or
  should accept.
• Consider discrimination some people do accept
  this, but it is not O.K. just because people
  accept it!
• We might ask if white people would accept
  discrimination if they were black etc.

13
Another Example

• A manufacturer advertises a bad or dangerous
  product without telling consumers the truth.
• Might ask if they would want others to do that if
  they were the consumers. Quite unlikely!

14
Another Way to Put the Point

• We should always treat humanity (in ourselves or
  others) as an end, never merely as a means.
• Do not treat people as if they are just a means
  to making a profit.
• Kant thought we were all valuable as rational
  creatures.
• He thinks people see their own worth and
  (rationally) do not want to be treated as an end.

15
Advantages for Business

• He adds humanistic concerns to business
  decisions. Motivation and principle are
  important to Kant doing the right thing for the
  right reason. We need to beware of rationalizing
  our decision after the fact.

16
Examples

• Consider Prudential Securities they sold and
  bought stocks to get commission (churning) and
  treated clients as ends not means.
• Medical researchers should not use people without
  their knowledge for the same reason (remember the
  case from the last lecture?).

17
Critique

• Recall the case of the clerk what would we say
  if she gave the money back because she cared for
  the customer does her action lack moral worth?
• Are there no exceptions to telling the truth?
  Keeping promises? Just because no one can make
  an exception of herself does that mean there are
  no exceptions?

18
Cont

• Kant thought prostitutes sell their services and
  in doing so treat themselves merely as a means
  but most of us sell our services. Is this O.K.?
  What if the prostitute freely sells her services
  what is the difference?

19
Synthesis

• Perhaps we can use Kants tests as a kind of
  traffic signal they give us clear rules that do
  not depend on context.
• We might look at consequentialist calculations
  the same way tests an action must pass to be
  acceptable.
• There are no easy answers but these are our tools!

20
Summary Kants View

• We should always act such that we can will the
  maxim of our action to become a universal law.
• We should always treat humanity (in ourselves or
  others) as an end never merely as a means.

21
Prima Facie Principles

• Prima facie principles are rules of thumb.
• Perhaps we can look at the categorical imperative
  as a rule of thumb?
• Consider the case of a murderer asking where your
  family is hiding should you tell the truth?
• Pluralism and context sensitivity.

22
Other Deontic Theories

• Besides Kants theory there are other rule-based
  (deontic) theories.
• Moral rights perhaps the strongest reasons we
  have - come from human rights.

23
Rights Theories

• Rights are entitlements which carry corresponding
  duties that are owed to people.
• If you have a right to an education, others have
  a duty to provide one for you (by paying taxes
  etc.).

24
Legal vs. Moral Rights

• Legal rights are different than moral rights.
• e.g. if I make you a promise you have a right to
  whatever I promised, even if the law will not
  enforce the promise!
• Rights to life, free speech, religious freedom
  etc. are legal in some places and not others.

25
Human Rights

• Universal
• Unlike the promise example all people have a
  right to life
• Held equally by all
• Unlike your childs right to your support
• Inalienable (non-transferable)
• Unlike property rights
• Natural
• Non-institutional the law is not their source

26
Negative vs. Positive rights

• Negative rights rights to be free from harm or
  interference.
• Freedom of religion, bodily integrity, assembly
  etc.
• Positive rights rights protecting vital
  interests that require others to provide us with
  goods, services, or opportunities.
• Right to an education, medical care, equal pay
  for equal work etc.

27
Human Right to Adequate Shelter
28
Rights and Utility

• Rights should be taken into account even if doing
  so does not maximize happiness e.g. cases of
  human research on uninformed subjects and
  discrimination violate human rights.
• Are these principles prima facie or absolute?

29
Review

• What is an imperative?
• What does Kant think is the only thing that is
  good in and of itself (why)?
• What are the two formulations of the categorical
  imperative?
• What are rights?
• What does prima facie mean?

30
Project

• Take this time to write a bit about which ethical
  theory you think is right. Why do you think so?
  If you think neither is right, why?
• Do you think the other theories have anything to
  add to our understanding of morality?