Essay Example on Metaphysics of Morals Immanuel Kant

Immanuel Kant an 18th century German philosopher believed that in contradiction to our unit one teachings religion and morality made for a defective pair and that the two should be kept separate from one another Alternatively Kant insisted that in order to determine what is right one must use reason along with consideration for others Kant believed that because people came from all different types of religious backgrounds if one only looked to their religious beliefs for their morality humans would ever arise to the exact same conclusions Kant being a moral absolutist thought that morality was almost a type of human constant and believed that no matter your religious affiliation we should all agree on moral conundrums Kant s main contribution to the ethical discussion is the distinction he made between things that we ought to do morally and things we ought to do for other non moral reasons His main idea is that most of the time whether or not we ought to do something is not our choice but instead it is subject to our own desires For a simple example if you want to get married then you ought to start talking to the opposing gender This large overarching idea is what Kant called Hypothetical Imperatives thus being instructions that you should follow if you want something Hypothetical Imperatives are based more so in logical and wisdom rather than morality Rather Kant viewed morality through what he describes as Categorical Imperatives these being decrees that one must follow regardless of your own desires