Kant's search for the supreme principle of morality / Samuel J. Kerstein.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kerstein, Samuel J., 1965- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Kant, Immanuel, 1724-1804--Ethics.

Kant, Immanuel.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xiv, 226 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2002.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

At the core of Kant's ethics lies the claim that if there is a supreme principle of morality then it cannot be a principle based on utilitarianism or Aristotelian perfectionism or the Ten Commandments. The only viable candidate for such a principle is the categorical imperative. This book is the most detailed investigation of this claim. It constructs a new, criterial reading of Kant's derivation of one version of the categorical imperative: the Formula of Universal Law. This reading shows this derivation to be far more compelling than contemporary philosophers tend to believe. It also reveals a novel approach to deriving another version of the categorical imperative, the Formula of Humanity, a principle widely considered to be the most attractive Kantian candidate for the supreme principle of morality. This book will be important not just for Kant scholars but for a broad swathe of students of philosophy.

Contents:

Introduction: Derivation, Deduction, and the Supreme Principle of Morality. No Modest Claim. The Basic Concept of the Supreme Principle of Morality. Derivation and Deduction of the Categorical Imperative. The (Alleged) Gap in the Derivation of the Formula of Universal Law. Terminological and Thematic Clarifications. Outline of the Book

1. Fundamental Concepts in Kant's Theory of Agency. Aims and Limits of the Discussion. Maxims: A Basic Account. Maxims and Other Rules of the Same Form. The Will. Determining Grounds of the Will. Acting from Inclination: Three Interpretations and Their Importance. Acting from Inclination in the Groundwork and in the Metaphysics of Morals.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).

Includes bibliographical references (p. 193-220) and index.

ISBN:

1-107-12520-0

1-280-41951-2

0-511-17664-3

0-511-04220-5

0-511-15753-3

0-511-32972-5

0-511-49820-9

0-511-04508-5

OCLC:

475916713