Immanuel Kant doing his duty, by Stephen Lahey 2021 Morality vs Legality Kant’s distinctive understanding of morality and freedom can help show why this is confused at best. Some people, such as American anti-government activist Ammon Bundy, claim that rules requiring masks are a form of tyranny. But apart from these implications, is there any more that we can gain from Kant concerning this issue? Finally, recognising the first two obligations and fulfilling them would be a form of respecting yourself as a moral, reasoning being. Second, it would help to protect the natural being of others, as well as respecting others as moral, reasoning persons who recognise the same obligation towards you. First, doing so would help preserve one’s own natural being. It seems clear that if Kant were alive today he would endorse wearing a face mask during pandemic conditions. These can be seen as duties to preserve the moral, reasoning person, and the natural, human creature respectively.

Prominent among these duties are not lying and not committing suicide. He builds on this to say that we have certain duties towards ourselves and others that must be performed regardless of extenuating circumstances. With rigorous logic he argues that we should treat other people as ends in themselves, not merely as means to our own ends. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) is famous for his moral philosophy of the Categorical Imperative. SUBSCRIBE NOW Articles Would Kant Have Worn a Face Mask? Todd Mei says yes, as a duty of practical reason.

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