POSC 201 Final (unit 4)

pray for me

Relationship between moral action and the good will (Kant)

• The one thing that is unqualifiedly good is good will

  • Many other things can be “good” but turn evil if the person doesn’t have good will

  • Only good because it’s good in itself, not because of the outcomes

    • Machiavelli is focused on consequences, but Kant believes actions are moral based on how they’re intended and willed

Kant’s use of Matthew Ch 10 v. 16

We must be wise as serpents (as politics is generally produced) but innocent as doves in politics, which holds the rights of men sacred

A “nation of devils” (Kant)

• The only way we can protect human rights is to establish a republican constitution

• Constrains us from using inclinations against each other. Even though we’re not angels, we must govern nations.

The mechanism of nature (Kant)

We must apply the mechanism to nature when ruling, we do what’s right because it’s in our own self-interest to do so

The transcendantal subject (Kant)

Deprived of every external impulse and interest

• No other object outside of itself

• Associated with good will

• Founded on reason, not inclination

Kant’s two imperatives

• Categorical: By thinking of a maxim (or acting in a specific way), you’re willing it to be a universal law

  • Declares an action to be objectively necessary alone without influence

  • Good intent

• Practical: Act in such a way that you’d treat humanity, as an end and never as a means

  • Respect yourself and others as ends

The Kingdom of Ends (Kant)

A rational being renders himself legislator in the kingdom of ends when using free will to decide if it aligns with universal laws

• When we live morally, we enter the kingdom of ends

• Similar to general will, obeying a law we prescribe for ourselves

Republican government and international law (Kant)

• Republican government is the solution to the natural condition of war

• As long as you have this, you’ll have peace in your nation

• The best way to secure international peace is trade and organization

Kant’s types of sovereignty

Based upon who has authority

• Autocracy: One

• Aristocracy: Few

• Democracy: Many

Kant’s types of government

Based on how we’re governed (more important than who)

• Despotic: Sovereign holds both legislative and executive powers

• Republican: Only legitimate form of government (Rousseau), only one under the law

Kant’s one innate right

Freedom and lack of constraint by others

Kant’s 3 elements of moral/political theory

• Political: Wise, clever, cunning

  • Humans can act in self-interest against the will of others (like Machiavelli)

• Morality: Innocence, action under autonomous will

OR reason, dignity, freedom (this is in study guide)

Autonomous and heteronomous will (Kant)

• Autonomous: Has its own end

  • Follows universal principles without external objects, desires, inclination

  • Related to practical reason (doing something because it’s moral to do)

• Heteronomous: Aims toward some further end

  • Influenced by external interests (not lying because it’s in your self-interest to preserve your reputation)

Relationship between moral action, inclination, duty, good will, and practical reason (Kant)

• An immediate inclination is one thought of organically, wthout conscious consideration. This isn’t a moral action

• Moral acts are done by duty alone, with good intention/will behind them

  • Only moral if duty is contrary to our inclination

• The derivation of action from moral laws is practical reason, which is synonymous with good will

Universal principles in society vs. particular interests in SON (Rousseau, Kant, Rawls)

Rousseau

• UP: Discerned by reason/duty, general will, right and justice reconciled with interest and inclination, moral freedom

• PI: Particular will, inclination, self-interest, impulse, appetite, natural liberty

Kant

• UP: Reason/duty, transcendental subject, autonomous will and practical reason legislating in a kingdom of ends

• PI: Particular interest (self-interest), inclination, heteronomous will

Rawls

• UP: Rational and self-interested agents in an original position of equality

• PI: Influence of personal qualities and inclinations, social advantages, and individual gain

Supreme limiting conditions to freedom of action (Kant)

Categorical and practical imperatives, just as the innocence of doves limits wisdom of serpents

Conflict between morality and politics (Kant)

• No objective conflict between morality and politics

• Subjectively, there’s always conflict due to self-interest in the physical realm

  • If we follow inclination, we won’t do what we ought to (make moral laws)

The social contract taken to a higher level of abstraction (Rawls)

Principles of justice are the aim of the social contract

• Free, rational, self-interested people are concerned with principles of justice to furhter their own interest

Justice as fairness and distribution of social goods (Rawls)

Principles of justice are agreed upon to make sure everyone benefits the same way no matter how disadvantaged they are

• Maximize the minimum, make sure even the most disadvantaged will benefit from principles/social and natural goods

Original position of equality and veil of ignorance (Rawls)

In a reality where no one knows their place, class, or advantages when they enter society in a new, hypothetical world

• What matters are the principles of justice we’d agree to here to ensure that no one is advantaged

• No one knows who’ll benefit from the priniciples when behind the veil, people want a society that still benefits them if they’re disadvantaged

Rawls’ two principles of justice (equal liberty, permissible inequality, diffidence principle)

• Equal liberty: Equal right to the most extensive liberty compatible with others

  • There are still some permissible inequalities (still just)

  • Premised on everyone having same rights

  • Similar to Rousseau, every rational person would choose to be free

• Diffidence principle: Social and eocnomic inequalities (permitted) must benefit all, especially the least advantaged

Rawls’ two priorities

• Priority of liberty

  • Can be restricted for the sake of greater liberty

• Priority of justice

  • Must always take precedence over efficiency (Utilitarians valued efficiency most)

Social and natural goods (Rawls)

• Social: Commonly desired by any rational man, put to use in everyone’s path of life (rights, liberty)

• Natural: Health, vigor, talents, can’t be distributed

Geist (Hegel)

Spirit, mind, idea

• The essence of the world around us, totality of all things

• Reality is a manifestation of spirit

  • Unfolds from lower moments of reason to higher moments of reason (development)

• Manifests through space (nature) and time (history)

Hegel on reason

“What is rational is real, and what is real is rational”

• Reason is important to him

• Even if we think reality is irrational, it’s shaped by rational principles

  • History may seem confusing but this is founded on reason, only becomes apparent after events conclude (Owl of Minerva)

Hegel on freedom

Universal freedom and absolute knowing is the final purpose of history (and God)

• The essence and “sole truth” of spirit

• Self-contained existence, state of complete independence

• Only truly efficient principle

• Incomplete in civil society, complete in the State

Hegel on history

• Simply reason working itself out, spirit unfolding unto the world through time (but need perspective to recognize this)

• The actualization of universal mind

• Moving to an endpoint

Hegel on the dialectic

Reality progressing to higher forms

• Happens through resolution of contradiction between affirmations/negations

• Everything is constantly in motion/changing

The struggle for recognition (Hegel)

Broken down into two types of consciousness

• Independent: For itself, discerns meaning internally

  • Serves as lord (herr) over DC as the slave (knecht)

• Dependent: For another, derives meaning from others, relies upon independent consciousness

These need each other for recognition

• Slave needs lord for meaning (provides work), and through labor, find a new independent identity

• Development from low → high

Hegel on the State

Resolution of family and civil society

• The actuality of the ethical idea

• Absolutely rational because of reason in history (the institution is, not always the people running it)

Hegel on civil society and family

• Family: First human connection, sense of dependence, natural predetermined belonging

  • Develop a sense of morality

  • Teaches you morals

• Civil society: Can fully exercise independence and liberty, bringing lessons from family with you

  • Able to claim your rights through laws

  • Protects rights

• Family acts as affirmation to negation of civil society

Hegel on abstract right and morality

• Abstract right: Framework of universal duties/laws, protected by laws in political community

• Morality: Inward conscience that differentiates goodness and wickedness, respect for others, which we have individual capacities for

• Abstract right acts as the affirmation to the negation of morality

Hegel on ethical idea/life

Resolution of abstract right and morality, where morals are universalized and rights are respected out of duty

• Has universal rights

Hegel as proto-totalitarian

• 20th century totalitarianism is the legacy of hegelism

Shlomo Avineri’s interpretation (Hegel)

Introduces the idea of particular altruism arising from families

• Family and civil society resolves into the State, which has universal altriusm

• In civil society, we gain universal egoism and independence (always gain and lose something in dialectal relationship)

Content and form of Hegel’s philosophy

• Content: Spirit

  • Universal, transcendant

• Form/mechanism: Dialectic

  • Material world

Affirmation and negation (Hegel)

• Affirmation: Aka thesis

• Negation: Aka antithesis

• Naturally conflictual, once resolved (synthesized) it reaches a negation of the negation

  • Results in partial preservation and partial abolition of both affirmation/negation → movement to higher state by dialectic

Marx on the dialectic

The world develops dialectically, but the content differs to Hegel

• The material realm comes first and produces spirit, idea, consciousness

• “Life determines consciousness”

Marx/Engels on materialism and production

The foundation/substructure of reality is found in material production and exchange

• The manner in which wealth is distributed depends on what is produced, how it’s produced, and the process of exchange

• This determines ideas, philosophy, morality, politics, culture, religion, etc.

Marx/Engels on class struggle and history

• Social and philosophical changes corresponds with economic changes in history

• The ruling class controls the economy, so they control the ideas accepted as truth (not objective)

• History is based around class struggle (not reason), and conflicts between proletarian and bourgeoisie

Marx/Engel’s proletarian and bourgeoisie classes, and communism

• Bourgeoisie: Affirmation that produces its own negation

  • Produces capital with prolet. labor

• Proletarian: Negation

• Communism: Negation of negation, classless society (imminent revolution)

Dictatorship of the proletariat (Marx/Engels)

The transitional stage between class struggle and communism

• Prolet. seizes the means of production, political power, and the state

• Causes prolet. class to die out because its members have switched roles to owners (no one to rule over)

• This causes state to wither away (its existence depends on the condition of class struggle)

• Aimed at limiting bourg. power, because that class is unfit to be elite

• Then, we’d become fully human and experience a rehabilitation with our humanity

Communism definition (Marx/Engels)

From each according to his abilities, to each its own needs

• Not the goal of human development nor the form of human society

Alienation (Marx/Engels)

Illusion of alienation created by communism

4 types of alienation (Marx/Engels)

• Worker alienated from the product of labor

  • The more effort, the weaker the worker, the more power the alien object has

• Worker alienated from the process of labor

  • We’re shaped by conditions of society (no objective human nature)

  • One perpetual thing in society is labor (the very thing that makes us human)

• From our species-being (aka humanity)

  • We’re only free in community, prolet. revolution would complete this freedom → universal

• From other human beings

Steps Marx/Engels want to impose

• Proletariat class achieves political superiority

  • Dictatorship of prolet. will use despotic methods

• Politics (function of power) and government will be replaced by the administration of things

  • Means of production will be equally owned

Two forms of communism (Marx/Engels)

• Communism in its first form: Wishes to eliminate talent by force, role of worker is extended to all men (not abolished), universalizeing bourg. property

  • Envy and greed are universalized → crude, changes in humanity haven’t occurred

• Communism in its second form: Positive abolition of private property and self-alienation, reconciliation of man with his humanity, solution to history

  • Authentic, humanist

  • There is a fixed nature here, can be fulfilled

Freedom (Bentham)

A product of our free will (more individual than Marx’ ideas), not because of our social conditions

Butchers, bakers, brewers (Smith)

Humans are social and interdependent, but can’t count on the benevolence of others

• We should appeal to their self-interest and prove that doing a favor for us would benefit them

• Bakers, etc. aren’t selling things out of the goodness of their heart but to make money

Self-interest and the invisible hand (Smith)

• We’re driven by self-interest, don’t intend to promote the public interest (but we’re not completely void of compassion)

• Assuming rational actors, if we’re each allowed to pursue our own self-interest, it will lead to collective common benefit

• There’s an invisible hand that guides us to common good (regardless of our intention)

Utilitarianism

Focused on choosing actions that will result in the highest extent of usefulness, benefit, and good

Role of state in utilitarianism (Smith)

• He supports minimal government, allowing individuals to pursue self-interest as they wish

• Limited but helps to protect society and administer justice by preserving rights

Doctrine of Utility (Mill/Bentham)

• Aka Greatest Happiness Principle

• “Greatest happiness/good for the greatest number”

• Happiness as in pleasure and minimal pain

Two sovereign masters (Mill/Bentham)

• Pleasure (appetite)

• Pain (aversion)

Ruling over the “ought” and “is”

Felicific calculus (Bentham)

Calculates the degree or amount of pleasure/pain an action causes

• Determines moral rightness by maximizing overall happiness

Pushpin and poetry (Bentham)

The utility of all arts and sciences is proportionate to the pleasure they yield

• There aren’t higher and lower pleasures, just judged by the amount of happiness produced

• The game of “pushpin” is of equal value to poetry/Shakespeare because it generates the same amount of pleasure

Socrates, fools, humans, pigs (Mill)

Argues that all pleasures are not equal

• It’s better to be a human dissatisfied (striving for higher pleasures) than a pig/fool satisfied by constantly gratifying lower pleasures

• Nothing wrong with playing pushpin, but don’t pretend that it’s better than reading poetry

Freedom of speech (Mill)

Emphasized importance of being free to express your opinion

• No matter how false, everyone should still speak up. False/repugnant statements will be revealed as false (overcome by the truth), and likely still have some bits of truth in them.

Parties of order/stability and progress/reform (Mill)

• Both are necessary

• Each derives its utility from the deficiencies of the other

• Truth reconciles and combines opposites (the two parties)

Democracy (Mill)

• Should be an aristocratic element in democracy, you need both liberty and discipline

• Concerned about a democracy that would promote mediocracy

• Democracy is inevitable and the future, but certain elements would help promote virtue + excellence

Proposed features of democracy of excellence (Mill)

• Proportional representation: Parties are given the amount of seats in Congress that corresponds to the # of votes they got, ensures proper representation between majority and minority groups

• Ranked voting system: You rank candidates, if one already has enough votes, your vote goes to the 2nd

• Weighed (plurality of) votes: People with higher understanding of politics would have more votes

  • An attempt to inject virtue/excellence into elections

Suffrage (Mill)

Universal adult suffrage (including women, it would be irrational to exclude half of population)

Government ruled by reason (Mill)

Prevents mediocracy, leads by intelligence

• People can elect whoever they want, not guaranteed they’ll make good choices

• Commission on legislation, appointed civil servants provide recommendations to representatives. They draft laws, and elected representatives ultimately have the role/choice of enforcing them.

Involved and uninvolved state (Mill)

• Should provide education and features to help better their citizens

• Should let citizens do things for themselves to learn, so they still participate and don’t become reliant

Liberty and others (Mill)

People can do whatever they want as long as they don’t harm others

• Power can only be used to prevent harm to others

Self-regarding and other-regarding interests (Mill)

• Self: My business

• Other: Things we do that affect others

  • Can’t harm others

Henry Adams

• Dynamo and Virgin Mary

• Steam and electricity

• Cross and Cathedral

• Dynamos: Symbol of ultimate modern, industrial, and scientific power (new, irresistible force)

  • Replaced spiritual power of Virgin Mary

  • Signified shift of medieval faith → modern tech

  • Similar to cross and electricity

• Virgin Mary: The supreme unifying force of the medieval world, emboyding spiritual power, feminine beauty, compassion, and divine law

  • Greatest force of Western world

  • Similar to Cathedral and steam

Spencer on social darwinism and survival of the fittest

• Social, economic, and political structures evolve through competition, where the “fit” thrive and the “unfit” fail

  • Advocates for capitalism, opposes welfare for the poor

  • Says that the weak should be allowed to perish for the overall improvement of society

Pope Leo XIII on liberty, morality, reason, reason, will, freedom

Liberty is a moral power rooted in reason

• Enables humanity to choose good (through will) and align with divine law

• Freedom is not an unconditional right but a gift to be perfected through virtue and a relationship with God

Pope St. John XXIII on the common good, economic order, and justice

• The common good is the sum of social conditions that allow people to reach fulfillment

• Economy must be at the service of humanity

  • Work is a natural human activity, and wages must be based on justice and equity

  • Property ownership is a natural right, but must benefit others

• Moral obligation to provide aid to lesser developed nations

Maritain on personality, human soul, knowledge, love

• Man is a spiritual and material being oriented toward a transcendent end

• Personality is from spirit

• Through knowledge, the soul contains the whole universe in itself, and informs the body

• Through love, it can give itself freely and contribute to common good

Niebuhr on human collectives, democracy, and moral behaviors

• Individuals can be moral

• Human collectives are inherently egoistic and power-driven

• Society is a perpetual state of conflict

• Justice is achieved in democracy by necessary conflict of power (people are selfish, makes democracy possible)

Lewis on the Tao

The natural way of things, a cosmic progression that all men should imitate

• General and special beneficence, treat others well

• Duties to children, elderly, poor, ancestors, parents

• Justice, honesty, mercy,

Lewis on the youth

• More students need to be taught how to be emotional and sensible

  • Becoming cold/heartless will make them more susceptible to propaganda

• It’s important to instill in them the ability to discern between just and unjust statements

Adler chapter 20

• We either acquire or fail to acquire moral freedom (to will as we ought) through choices we’ve freely made

• We’re entitled to (1) freedom to do as we please within limits of justice and (2) political liberty, variant of circumstantial freedom

• We must pursue happiness

  • Done by moral virtue and good fortune