Maxim Tester
Take Kant's own examples step by step through the test of the categorical imperative.
Duty
“Duty is the necessity of an action done out of respect for the law” — the core concept of Kantian ethics.
Kant draws a sharp line between acting in conformity with duty and acting from duty: someone who is honest because honesty pays, or out of fear of punishment, acts outwardly right — but only an action whose determining ground is respect for the moral law itself has moral worth.
Duty, for Kant, is not blind obedience to external authorities but the self-obligation of reason: the will binds itself to the law it gives itself as a rational being. Ethical theories that, like Kant's, put duty at the centre are still called deontological — theories of duty.
Try it yourself
Dilemma workshop
Tricky cases based on Kant's own examples: decide for yourself first, then Kant speaks.
Flashcards
Review the concept with the Leitner flashcards — what you know comes back less often.
Where it appears
- Enlightenment — Public or private?
- Ethics — From duty — not merely in conformity with duty
- Life — Table talks
- Peace & Politics — Right and state: the Metaphysics of Morals
- The Metaphysics of Morals
- Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals
- Critique of Practical Reason — Origin & context
- On a Supposed Right to Lie from Philanthropy — Genesis & context
- Answering the Question: What Is Enlightenment? — Core theses
- FAQ
- Hope — The highest good: worthy and happy
- Doing
- Teaching — 1 · What is Enlightenment?
Source: Wikipedia: Duty