Immanuel Kant was the 18th century German philosopher who established deontological ethics. Deontology judges actions based on adherence to rules of duty, rather than the consequences. Kant believed moral laws were universal and that the only intrinsically good thing is having a good will by acting from duty. He argued that the morality of an act depends not on its outcome, but solely on the intentions and principles behind it.

3. Immanuel Kant

4. The first great philosopher to define deontological principles
was Immanuel Kant, the 18th-century German founder of
critical philosophy.
Deontology is an ethical theory that uses rules to
distinguish right from wrong. Kant believed that ethical
actions follow universal moral laws, such as “Don't lie. Don't
steal.
Kant recognized as the most important philosopher who has
ever lived.

5. THE GOOD WILL : THE HEART OF KANT’S ETHICS
Inversions And Morality is the heart of Kant’s ethics. Kant
argues that no consequence can have fundamental moral
worth, the only thing that is good in and of itself is the
Good Will.
Kant’s claims that what makes an act right/good and
wrong/bad does not depend on its result or consequences.
According to him morality, as the sole and exclusive domain
of rational beings should be something of which one should
have total control.

6. The center of Kant’s ethical philosophy is his primary
emphasis on the importance of reason and the
unqualified rational nature of moral principles.
At the very outset of his brilliant philosophical work
Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals
(in 1785). Kant writes “nothing can be called good
without the qualification except a good will. Having a
good will, or acting in good will means doing an act
with the right intensions or motives .

7. Duty over Inclination
Inclination means the mark of a good person to take
pleasure in moral action," or what one wants to do.
Inclination, like appetite, is a mode of desire.
Furthermore, this mode of desire is determined by feelings of
pleasure and displeasure, which is why Kant describes
inclination in the Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals as
'the dependence of the faculty of desire on sensation.
What is the difference between acting from duty and acting
from inclination?

8. In acting from duty, and in acting in accordance with duty, the
action is the same. The difference relates to the
motivation of the act (my will).
Duty in Superior to Happiness
Kant says that morality is not about becoming happy, but
rather about becoming worthy of happiness by heeding the
call of duty.
Happiness is not to be ignored when making decisions in life.
It is not unimportant. Kant does believe that, all other things
being equal, it is better to be happy than to be miserable.
And he wouldn't think that looking out for our own happiness
is immoral.

9. The Categorical Imperative: The Universalizability Principle
the principle that particular moral judgments always carry an implied
universal judgment.
for example, "I ought to loose weight I need to go on a diet and
exercise", this would be a goal for someone to loose weight.
One of Kant's categorical imperatives is the universalizability principle,
in which one should "act only in accordance with that maxim
through which you can at the same time will that it become a
universal law.”
The categorical imperative is something that a person must do, no
matter what the circumstances

10. The Principle of Humanity (Respect for Persons)
Respect for persons is one of the fundamental principles, the
recognition of a person as a autonomous, unique, and free
individual.
It also means that we recognize that each person has the right and
capacity to make her or his own decisions. Respecting a person
ensures that dignity is valued.
Central to Kant's ethical theory is the claim that all persons are
owed respect just because they are persons, that is, free rational
beings. To be a person is to have a status and worth that is unlike
that of any other kind of being it is to be an end in itself with dignity

11. The Autonomy of the Will (Kingdom of Ends)
A Kingdom of Ends is composed entirely of rational beings,
whom Kant defines as those capable of moral
deliberation (though his definition expands in other
areas) who must choose to act by laws that imply an
absolute necessity. It is from this point of view that they
must judge themselves and their actions.
This form of autonomy consists in the capacity of the will
of a rational being to be a law to itself, independently
of the influence of any property of objects of volition

12. Critical Assessment of Deontological Ethics
Strengths of Deontological Ethics
Motivation is valued over consequences, which are beyond our
control.
An immoral motive cannot be justified by unforeseen good
consequences, but a good motive is worthy of value in itself.
- It is a humanitarian principle in which all people are considered
to be of equal value
-Justice is always an absolute and applicable to all equally.
- It recognises the value of moral absolutes that do not change
with time or culture.
- It provides objective guidelines for making moral decisions.

13. Weaknesses of Deontological Ethics
• Moral obligations can be difficult to explain except by reference to duty.
• In reality our decision-making is influenced by many more factors.
• It is questionable whether duty is a good a motive. What about if it goes
wrong?
• The principle of universalizability does not always work. Any command
could be universalised, but that would not make it morally right
Kant argues that what is good to do is what we ought to do and that what
is inherently good and intrinsically right is the way in which we ought to
behave for the mutual good of all.

14. Its certainly manages to overcome a few of the criticisms
of utilitarianism. However, deontology still carries its own
flaw.
Perhaps the strongest criticism of deontology though is
that Kant does not allow for conflicting duties. For
example, your duty tells you not to lie, but so is allowing
someone to be injured by another. So what do you do if
you can protect the victim by a simple lie?

15. REMINDERS 