Immanuel Kant And David Hume - 847 Words

Mary Midgley critically analyzes philosophers such as Immanuel Kant and David Hume, and argues that they have greatly influenced our way of thinking. She quotes G.R. Grice, in which he states that not all classes have natural rights, and questions just what rights and duties, by an extension, are. By delving into the thoughts of John Stuart Mill and Kant, she formulates her own arguments and contends that duties should be applied to everything and everyone around us. She stresses that that a person is responsible to everything, from another human being to an inanimate object. She then separates these duties into five different sectors: the human, animal, inanimate, comprehensive, and miscellaneous (such as oneself and God). Using this chart, she demonstrates that it is quite easy for one to exclude minorities when you only look at a portion of the scale and refuse to examine the entire image. Furthermore, she makes a very clear distinction that we should not have duties towards these inanimate sectors because we must personify them, but rather because these objects contain value to those who are animate. Therefore, she concludes that we all have to duties to these sectors, not just in concerns of them. In regards to Midgley’s interpretation of duties, I personally agree with it. There is a truth in her claim in which there are duties and obligations between both symmetrical and asymmetrical pairs. We must not always consider that our only duties are towards other humanShow MoreRelatedDavid Hume And Immanuel Kant964 Words   |  4 Pages David Hume and Immanuel Kant argue about the origin of something nearly everyone agrees on, our actions are a result of reason. Hume holds the idea that actions, when cut down to their core, are a result of the universal feelings that a species shares. Kant’s counterargument is that actions, when not done as a means to an end or faculty of desire, are done from duty and only such have true moral worth. He goes on to define good will with and without limitations, and separates the duties towardsRead MoreIs David Hume Or Immanuel Kant?1428 Words   |  6 PagesWas David Hume or Immanuel Kant more virtuous in their ethical philosophy? First we must understand what these ethical writings were for each modern philosopher. Both Hume and Kant were very influential philosophers during their lifetime, they have also disagreed on many ideas they argue for. We will be focusing specifically on their ethical philosophies to determine which philosopher, if any, would be considered to be more virtuous. In order to answer this question, we must answer a few otherRead MoreComparing David Hume and Immanuel Kant Essay1356 Words   |  6 PagesComparing David Hume and Immanuel Kant David Hume and Immanuel Kant each made a significant break from other theorists in putting forward a morality that doesn’t require a higher being or god, for a man to recognize his moral duty. Although Hume and Kant shared some basic principals they differed on their view of morality. In comparing the different views on human will and the maxims established to determine moral worth by David Hume and Immanuel Kant, I find their theories on morality have someRead MoreKant And David Hume Views On The Matter1457 Words   |  6 Pageschoices that lead to an individual to both reason and feel some sort of emotion. Objectively speaking, there is a no fine line between reasoning and how one feels, however there seems to be a distinct difference between the philosophers Immanuel Kant and David Hume views on the matter. Both are life changing philosophers with very opposing views. One sees the feelings in human nature while the other seems to see nothing but rationality. One can argue both are used but according to these two thereRead More Age of reason Essay1294 Words   |  6 Pagesopinions (Sartre4). David Hume was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on May 7, 1711. Educated at home and then at the University of Edinburgh; here he studies law but then decides to pursue an independent study of his own ideas (Sartre 132). nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;From 1734 to 1737 Hume was busy writing his book, A Treatise of Human Nature, which talked about the problems of thoughtful philosophy (Hampshire 105). However, the public ignored this important piece of work making Hume feel like he wasRead MoreThe Age of Reason1424 Words   |  6 PagesThesis: To discuss the philosophers who participated and had an affect in The Age of Reason. OUTLINE I. David Hume A. Contributions to the Age of Reason B. Who and what influenced him II. Jean Jacques Rousseau A. What he believed in B. Who influenced him III. Claude Adrien Helvetius A. Influences B. Reasons for contribution IV. Immanuel Kant A. How he made a difference B. Why he made a difference C. What caused him to make a difference V. Johann Fichte A. Influences Read MoreKant And Hume On Morality Essay1952 Words   |  8 Pagesrelationship between Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) and David Hume (1711-1776) is a source of wide spread fascination’ (Standard Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Kant and Hume on Morality). Purpose of this essay is to provide Immanuel Kant’s claims on sympathy and David Hume’s assessment on it, backed up by their reasoning’s. By doing so, strong argument will separately be provided from both sides and the task then is to present my personal opinion on whose argument seems more compelling. David Hume’s assessmentRead MoreEssay On the Obligation to Keep One’s Promises1395 Words   |  6 Pagesmammoth rather successfully are Immanuel Kant and David Hume. The backbone of Kant’s moral philosophy is what he calls the â€Å"categorical imperative.† In the Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals, Kant uses the preface and the first section to introduce and develop the idea, and then in the second section finally states it for the first time: â€Å"Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.† (Kant, Grounding for the MetaphysicsRead MorePersonal Identity : David Hume1133 Words   |  5 Pageshead. David Hume dedicated a portion of his philosophy in the attempts to finally put what he saw as a fallacious claim concerning the soul to rest. In the skeptical wake of Hume, German idealist, beginning with Immanuel Kant, were left with a variety of epistemic and metaphysical problems, the least of which was personal identity. David Hume was a Scottish empiricist who became renowned as a philosopher for his metaphysical skepticism and his account of the mind. Born in the 18th century, Hume followsRead MoreInto The Woods By Stephen Sondheim Essay1612 Words   |  7 Pagesthroughout the play, decisions that play a very important role throughout the play and the field of ethics. In fact, philosophers such as Immanuel Kant and David Hume– philosophers that extensibly contributed with ethical views regarding respect and dignity– may agree or disagree with the ethical decisions taken by the characters on specific instances. In fact, Kant and Hume have developed a set of views that determine what is right and wrong; very useful to decide whether or not the Baker’s decisions are