What is Deontology?
Key Terms - Motive of Duty, Formula of Universal Law, Formula of Humanity
Deontology is a moral theory instructing individuals what they should do and how to act. Deontology, famously propelled by Immanuel Kant, argues that the morally right act depends on acting upon moral duties that conform with universally justifiable views (Larry & Moore, 2007). Deontology is rules based since the actions depend on universally justifiable views. The theory is also non-maximising and non-aggregative. Since the morality of an action depends on universally justifiable views, it is possible for some actions to always be wrong. This is in contrast to consequentialism, where no act can always be wrong.
Maxims instruct individuals to which ends must be adopted – our own moral self-perception or the happiness of others. Immanuel Kant places an emphasis on freedom and autonomy. Humans are rational beings, and so self-legislating. Therefore, morally right actions depend on their motive. This motive is called the motive of duty. The motive of duty determines the morality of an action (Sher, 2012, pp. 329-330). For example, there is a shopkeeper who sells potatoes by the kilo. A customer purchases two kilograms from the shopkeeper. When measuring the weight of the potatoes to ensure the customer receives two kilograms, the shopkeeper removes the weight of the bag. This would be an honest shopkeeper since he has not tried to maximise his profits by deceiving the customer and not providing two kilograms of potatoes. The shopkeeper has decided to act like this due to his motive of duty – to provide the correct product for the price advertised. The goodwill of the shopkeeper is unconditionally a good thing, as opposed to other inclinations such as desire for pleasure or happiness or charity.
Kant suggests applying the categorical imperative in order to ascertain the moral code. There are two formulas: the formula of Universal Law/ golden rule and the formula of Humanity. The formula of Universal Law is to “act according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it become a universal law” (Sher, 2012, p. 335). In order for it to be a universal law, everyone must find the maxim justifiable. Scanlon expands that “an act is wrong if and only if any principle that permitted it would be one that could be reasonably rejected by people moved to find principles for the general regulation of behaviours, that similarly motivated, could not reasonably reject” (Scanlon, 1998, p. 4). This implies that an act is morally wrong if people can find a reason to reject it, and an act is morally right is people cannot find a reason a reason to reject it – emphasising on the point of universalizable views. The formula of Humanity is to “act so that you treat humanity whenever in your own person or in that of another, always as an end and never as a means only” (Sher, 2012, p. 339). Actions, such as stealing, treat people as means and violate the formula of humanity and so would be morally wrong.
On Friday, I will attempt to answer whether deontology provides an adequate response to Climate Change. Since you are now aware of what deontology is, do you think it can provide an answer?