Kant's Ethics
Kant's ethics shows a difference between theoretical reason and practical reason. Theoretical reason works under the law of cause and effect. The law of cause and effect is basically when something happens, something else will respond according to the situation. For example, I have to eat because I am hungry. Practical reason occurs when we choose to act freely. For example, a kid is playing by himself because he has no friends, so I decide to play with him. I didn't have to play with him, I chose to play with him.
A human act is morally good when it is done for the sake of duty.
Kant defines duty as doing the right thing just because it is right, not for a selfish goal. Kant says that a person's action is good only if they are motivated by duty and nothing else. For example, a shopkeeper may lower her price for cookies because it is the right thing to do, but if she lowers the prices just because she doesn't want her customers to go somewhere else, then it isn't a "good" duty.
The video below is a clip from The Little Mermaid. Here it shows Ursula, pretending to be good so she can control Ariel. She tricks Ariel into thinking she is nice, by turning her into a human. But in reality, she is only doing that so she can later control Ariel, and then use her to defeat Triton, Ariel's father. What she is doing is not a good action. She has the idea of duty wrong. What she is doing is a selfish act for her own benefit.
The video below is a clip from The Little Mermaid. Here it shows Ursula, pretending to be good so she can control Ariel. She tricks Ariel into thinking she is nice, by turning her into a human. But in reality, she is only doing that so she can later control Ariel, and then use her to defeat Triton, Ariel's father. What she is doing is not a good action. She has the idea of duty wrong. What she is doing is a selfish act for her own benefit.
I must act in such a way that the principles according to which I act should become a universal law.
What Kant means when he says this, is that everyone should act in such a way that we would want everyone else in the world to act. For example, stealing may benefit you because you get the item for free, but it doesn't benefit the seller, because they are losing money. You also wouldn't want other people to steal from you. That is why you shouldn't steal, because you wouldn't want the whole world to steal. Another example is cheating on a test. Like the last example, it benefits yourself but it doesn't benefit the other party. If cheating becomes universalized, then no one would benefit from it. Therefore, you shouldn't cheat as you wouldn't want everyone else to cheat too.
The video below is a short clip from The Beauty and the Beast. In this video, it shows how the prince was mean, and selfish. He rejected to provide shelter for a poor old woman who was out in the cold. Because of this, he was punished by being turned into a beast. If his actions were universalized, then everyone in the world would be mean and selfish, and nobody would be helping others. We wouldn't want a world filled with cruel people, that is why we shouldn't act like the prince, and we should help people for the sake of doing good.
The video below is a short clip from The Beauty and the Beast. In this video, it shows how the prince was mean, and selfish. He rejected to provide shelter for a poor old woman who was out in the cold. Because of this, he was punished by being turned into a beast. If his actions were universalized, then everyone in the world would be mean and selfish, and nobody would be helping others. We wouldn't want a world filled with cruel people, that is why we shouldn't act like the prince, and we should help people for the sake of doing good.
People may not be treated simply as a means but always at the same time as an ends.
Treating people as a means, means that we are using them so we can achieve our goal and benefit from it. Treating people as an ends means that they are helping us achieve our goal, and in the end we will all benefit from it. Kant tells us to treat people as an ends, because in the end everyone benefits from your goal, and everyone is happy.
The video below is from the movie Up. In this short clip, Russell wants to assist an elderly person because he is missing his "Assist and Elderly Person badge." He is treating Carl (The elderly man) as a means, because he is using him to achieve his goal in getting his badge. Carl will not benefit from this, only Russell will. Kant wouldn't want this, he would want Russell to treat Carl as an ends.
The video below is from the movie Up. In this short clip, Russell wants to assist an elderly person because he is missing his "Assist and Elderly Person badge." He is treating Carl (The elderly man) as a means, because he is using him to achieve his goal in getting his badge. Carl will not benefit from this, only Russell will. Kant wouldn't want this, he would want Russell to treat Carl as an ends.