Immanuel Kant was a promising modern philosopher born on April 22, 1714. He is considered to be the most influential figure in modern philosophy, with good reason. He sparked a philosophical revolution. Immanuel Kant gave his unique spin on epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics. Most of his ideas had never come up before. Immanuel Kant was a genius and ahead of his time. His philosophical points are still debated to this day.
Immanuel Kant’s stance on ethics differs from any philosopher before him. Before Kant, there were several prominent ethical theories which attempt to explain morality. Renown classical philosopher Thomas Aquinas thought all morals came from a higher being outside of our known realm of time and space. Aquinas came up with the Divine Command Theory (Moral Philosophy). As the name suggests, Divine Command Theory is the notion all morals come from a single divine being: a God. Kant objected to this notion of ethics. He says religion and morality have nothing to do with …show more content…
The Formula of Humanity says every person has rights because they exist. “Act so that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in that of another, always as an end and never as a mere means.” An immoral deed would be taking advantages of others for one’s personal gain. If one would be infringing on the rights of others, effectively treating them as means for improving their own quality of life, that act would be immoral by Kant’s Formulation of Humanity (Value of Humanity in Kant 's Moral Theory - Oxford Scholarship). Suppose an individual were to help somebody, however, the only reason they are providing assistance is to impress a nearby crowd. According to Kant, even though this individual was helping somebody else, their act is immoral. This is because the person being helped is a mean. He serves only to make the one providing assistance look like a good
Immanuel Kant’s stance on ethics differs from any philosopher before him. Before Kant, there were several prominent ethical theories which attempt to explain morality. Renown classical philosopher Thomas Aquinas thought all morals came from a higher being outside of our known realm of time and space. Aquinas came up with the Divine Command Theory (Moral Philosophy). As the name suggests, Divine Command Theory is the notion all morals come from a single divine being: a God. Kant objected to this notion of ethics. He says religion and morality have nothing to do with …show more content…
The Formula of Humanity says every person has rights because they exist. “Act so that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in that of another, always as an end and never as a mere means.” An immoral deed would be taking advantages of others for one’s personal gain. If one would be infringing on the rights of others, effectively treating them as means for improving their own quality of life, that act would be immoral by Kant’s Formulation of Humanity (Value of Humanity in Kant 's Moral Theory - Oxford Scholarship). Suppose an individual were to help somebody, however, the only reason they are providing assistance is to impress a nearby crowd. According to Kant, even though this individual was helping somebody else, their act is immoral. This is because the person being helped is a mean. He serves only to make the one providing assistance look like a good