Freedom and Responsibility in Kant and Sartre, Essay Example

Within the Metaphysics of Morals, by Immanuel Kent, he defines actions as essentially being good or bad resulting in two imperatives “Categorical Imperative: that you must act such that you expect everyone to act the same way, and the Practical Imperative, that we must treat others only as ends, not merely as means.” (Hughes 2009). Kent placed freedom at the centre of his thinking on human existence.  He stated it ” as the key to the autonomy of the will”, meaning freedom is a causality of living, as such freedom and morality co-exist. Hence ” As a rational being, and consequently belonging to the intelligible world, man can never conceive the causality of his own will otherwise than on condition of the idea of freedom.” (Hughes 2009).

With Sartre on Extentialism he sets out what it is to be human, as such adapting methods of phemonology.  Sartre agreed with Kent on the concept that each individual is endowed with unlimited freedom. Sartre went on to say that freedom was all about the ability to make choices and as such it was impossible not to make choices.  Sartre was explicit on his stand on ethics stating ” there is an ethical normativity about authenticity. If one ought to act authentically, is there any way of further specifying what this means for the nature of ethical choices?” (Onof 2004).  ” There are in fact many statements in Being and Nothingness which emphasise a universality criterion not entirely dissimilar from Kant’s. This should come as no surprise since both Sartre and Kant’s approaches are based upon the ultimate value of a strong notion of freedom. As Sartre points out, by choosing, an individual commits not only himself, but the whole of humanity (BN, 553).” (Onof 2004)

Works Cited

Hughes, Glynn. Hughes Squashed Philosophers. 2009. http://www.btinternet.com/~glynhughes/squashed/kant2.htm (accessed 11 11, 2009).

Onof, Christian J. Sartres Extensialism. 10 13, 2004. http://www.iep.utm.edu/sartre-ex/ (accessed 11 11, 2009).