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The Moral Law as a Fact of Reason and Correctness Conditions for the Moral Law

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 September 2017

BYEONG D. LEE
BYEONG D. LEE*
Affiliation:
Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea
*
*<bydlee@skku.edu>
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Abstract

In the second Critique, Kant claims that the moral law is given as a fact of reason. In this paper, contra the standard view, I argue that there is a non-dogmatic way of defending this claim. And Kant’s principle of morality is widely taken to be a formal principle. How then can such a formal principle be reconciled with our substantial moral end? In this paper, I also argue that Kant’s principle of morality can be construed as a formal principle in the sense that it provides correctness conditions for moral laws, rather than providing specific moral laws.

Dans sa deuxième Critique, Kant affirme que la loi morale se donne comme un fait de raison. Dans cet article, contrairement à la position standard, nous prétendons qu’il existe une autre façon — non dogmatique — de défendre cette affirmation. Par ailleurs, le principe de moralité de Kant est largement considéré comme étant formel. Comment un tel principe formel peut-il être réconcilié avec notre fin morale substantielle? Nous soutenons également que le principe de moralité de Kant peut être interprété comme un principe formel dans le sens où il fournit des conditions d’acceptabilité pour les lois morales, et non des lois morales spécifiques.

Keywords

Kantian ethicsmoral lawfact of reasoncorrectness conditions for moral lawscoherentist defence
Type
Original Article/Article original
Information
Dialogue: Canadian Philosophical Review / Revue canadienne de philosophie , Volume 57 , Issue 1 , March 2018 , pp. 47 - 66
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Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Philosophical Association 2017 

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