The Philosophy of Immanuel Kant

                                                       

I am here to give you the important details of the philosopher Immanuel Kant which focuses on The Categorical Imperative. But first let me define the word philosophy, it comes from the Greek words Philo (which means love) and Sophos (which means wisdom) together they mean love of wisdom and the thirst of the philosopher to find answers to this mysterious life.

   

        Immanuel Kant was born on April 22, 1724, in Konigsberg, Prussia, or what is now Kaliningrad, Russia. In 1740, Kant enrolled at the University of Konigsberg as a theology student, but was soon attracted to mathematics and physics. In 1746, his father died and he was forced to leave the university to help his family. For a decade, he worked as a private tutor for the wealthy. During this time he published several papers dealing with scientific questions exploring the middle ground between rationalism and empiricism In 1755, Immanuel Kant returned to the University of Konigsberg to continue his education. That same year he received his doctorate of philosophy. For the next 15 years, he worked as a lecturer and a tutor and wrote major works on philosophy. In 1770, he became a full professor at the University of Konigsberg, teaching metaphysics and logic. While tutoring, he published science papers, including "General Natural History and Theory of the Heavens" in 1755. He spent the next 15 years as a metaphysics lecturer. Kant focused on ethics, the philosophical study of moral actions. He proposed a moral law called the “categorical imperative,” stating that morality is derived from rationality and all moral judgments are rationally supported. What is right is right and what is wrong is wrong; there is no grey area. Human beings are obligated to follow this imperative unconditionally if they are to claim to be moral. In 1781, he published the first part of Critique of Pure Reason. He published more critiques in the years preceding his death on February 12, 1804, in the city of his birth.


       Immanuel Kant is known for his contributions in the lines of metaphysics, epistemology, ethics and aesthetics. Kant believed that there was a supreme principle of morality, and he referred to it as The Categorical Imperative. The mentioned Categorical Imperative is the central philosophical content in the deontological moral of philosophy which talks about acting upon the rules that were enforced. It is about the morality of one person in which he or she acts on a certain situation without expecting a return or directed appreciation from the person which you did a good deed to. An imperative depending on Immanuel Kant is something that a person or people must do for example if a person wants to eat it is imperative that they have to eat some food in order to fulfill their hunger. The Categorical Imperative is the golden rule of Immanuel Kant it is similar to the golden rule of Confucius which talks and discusses about how one person would treat another person in the same way he or she would like to be treated. The people must obligate to their own duties in which it will make the world a better place somehow.



I chose this type of philosophy because it talks about the behavior of people in which focuses on how they act on certain situations depending on the scenarios that will take place. This philosophy of the renowned philosopher Immanuel Kant is about how humanity works and the factors that can affect the behavior of people. I was intrigued with Kant’s Categorical Imperative because it is the rule that can change the world if all people would cooperate and follow this type of rule because if we rid this world of evil only the good will remain that is however my opinion only. The Categorical Imperative tells us that we should do our duties and we must be responsible for anything we have
done. It teaches about the good we must do in order to produce a positive outcome in the world that can create a ripple in which it can change a person’s life. If people would treat other people with the respect and love they need they can become a follower of the principles of Immanuel Kant in which the person who received the respect and kindness will also treat another person with respect and kindness and on and on and on. A simple gesture of gratitude and kindness can change the world if
many more people would contribute and make a change for the world.


         My overall outlook and reaction to this philosophy of Immanuel Kant is that The Categorical Imperative can help us find our true purpose in our lives. Every person has his/her own perception on life and with these different point of views can result in different actions on which the person will act out on the world. It is very important to remember that people are given their own free will that means they can do things that they want to do depending on their interests and results that they are searching for.


        The ending of this topic would be about how we should appreciate every philosopher’s work, because they contributed to the development of the thinking of the human race and without the knowledge that they added the world we know today might not exist because of the poor thinking of our ancestors. Each of us can look on the works of these philosophers differently but in the end we must all act upon the greater good that our actions will produce for our community.
Even the historians of today try to make the modern people of our time appreciate the literature of the past more because these events that took place back then can make a greater impact on the future of our world and it can start today. This concludes my research paper for the philosopher Immanuel Kant and his work on ethics.

                  Credits to the following.
                 :http://www.iep.utm.edu/kantmeta/
                 :http://www.philosophybasics.com/
                 :https://www.britannica.com/biography/Immanuel-Kant
                 :https://www.biography.com/people/immanuel-kant-9360144
                 :http://www.philosophers.co.uk/immanuel-kant.html
                 :https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immanuel_Kant
                 :Immanuel Kant Google Images