Kantian Ethics: Immanuel Kant

Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher most famous for his deontological ethics, also known as Kantian ethics. Kant believed that whether an action was right or wrong did not depend on the consequences, but on whether they fulfilled our duty as rational beings. Kant’s ethics are guided from the philosophical concept that is the Categorical Imperative, a wholly binding rule of morality that is justified as an end in itself. In the spelunker case, Kant would ultimately have the choice of killing the large man to save himself and the life of others, or have all of them perish. The fact that the former is the only option which ends with life does not matter to Kant. This choice would be quite an easy decision for him to make. Kant believes murder of the innocent is impermissible no matter the situation or the outcome. Based on the formulations in Kant’s …show more content…
Utilitarianism would surely lead to greater happiness in the world than Kantianism would, but unfortunately it has its downfalls. I would much rather live in a world where we are considered rational beings than a world where my happiness or life can be taken away for the sake of others. It is also much easier to determine an action as morally right in Kantian ethics. Both sides have compelling arguments, but I would ultimately make the decision to kill the large man. In an ideal situation, it would be great for the man to rationalize the dilemma and explain to me that this would be the right option. Not through coercion, but through reason. The man is going to die regardless of my choice. As far as Kant’s ethics go, I just could not bring myself to deal away with emotions and subjectivity when deciding moral worth. I believe neither sides are the right way of acting, but a combination of both could be very effective. In almost all situations, murder, theft and lying should be prohibited, but in these type of cases, not