Session #11 - 1/2 - Examples of Kant's deontological ethics
Details
“An action, to have moral worth, must be done from duty”
Immanuel Kant
Session Outline
If you are not knowledgeable about Immanuel Kant, no problem, we will make sure everybody enjoys a healthy debate without any previous knowledge required.
Let’s start with this thought:
Picture your life as a series of crossroads. On one side lies an easy path of fleeting whims and comforts. On the other paths are inconvenient duties and commitments to what is right—often requiring personal sacrifice. Kant invites you to look beyond just the consequences and ask: Am I acting in a way that I would want everyone, everywhere, to follow?
Join us and share the maxims you believe would make the world a better place.
Our debate will be about principle over pleasure, integrity over convenience. and the role of autonomy.
Let's explore several moral questions together and see how we meet Kant's morality in each of them.
- Introduction (15 minutes)
We start with a short introduction of the guests - Group Discussion (1 hour and 45 min)
- Some of the questions:
- Should one prioritize personal happiness or moral duty?
- Is it ever permissible to lie to protect someone’s feelings?
- Should one break a promise if circumstances change drastically?
- Can self-interest ever justify an action?
- Do we have a duty to help strangers in need?
- Is it ethical to treat animals poorly if they lack rationality?
- Should one always act consistently, even if past actions were wrong?
- Can one use emotional persuasion to achieve moral ends?
- Is civil disobedience morally justified when laws are unjust?
We will use examples for these questions and use AI tools to research about what would be a correct answer according to Kant's philosophy.
How to contribute: the Philosophy Club is collaborating with the venue (Kovasz) and epicurea.hu. You are totally free to drink whatever you want, but if interesting, we arranged for you a stunning 40% (and up to) 50% discount on alcohol-free wine glasses, only if you pre-order before the event here:
EN: https://epicurea.hu/en/alkoholmentes-borkostolo-budapesten/soberhood-philosophy-wine-glasses
HU: https://epicurea.hu/alkoholmentes-borkostolo-budapesten/soberhood-filozofiai-borospoharak