Kant Application Moral

What is reality? It's a seemingly simple question. But penetrate beneath its surface and the simplicity drops away, a succession of subsequent questions luring you deeper—to where even more questions await.

Webster's dictionary defines ethics as "a group of moral principles or set of values … governing the behavior of an individual or a profession." A moment's reflection reminds one that the definition cames inherent anthropological limits: Most ethical principles represent tribal rules, not guidelines universally deduced by the species as being to their advantage. By no means can we prove that Fiji Islanders necessarily agree with Kant's categorical imperatives. Furthermore, even within our Western tribes, subcultures differ vigorously in some aspects of their ethics. Witness the divisions that separate the principles of the Moral Majority from what many academics believe.

We have all pondered seemingly unanswerably but significant questions about our existence—the biggest of all being, “Why are we here?” Philosophy has developed over millennia to help us grapple with these essential intangibles. There is no better way to study the big questions in philosophy than to compare how the world’s greatest minds have analyzed these questions, defined the terms, and then reasoned out potential solutions. Once you’ve compared the arguments, the final step is always deciding for yourself whether you find an explanation convincing.