Immanuel Kant: The Ethics Of Lying

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It is a general assumption that everyone has lied. Are these lies all necessarily “bad?” Has there ever been a time that telling a lie has been more helpful than by telling the truth? Immanuel Kant was “a dominant figure in the history of modern philosophy” (Cahn 98). He stated that lying is never justifiable, since it does not give a person he respect that they deserve. This paper will argue against Kant, saying that there are situations that lying is permissible in that it protects a person's physical and/or mental well-being. Kant is very adamant about the fact that lying is always wrong. Kant reasons that the moral worth of a person's actions are to be evaluated by the maxim, principle, or motivation of the action rather than the consequences. …show more content…

She shares this information with her close friend. In a sense, the wife's life is in her friend's hands. If, in fact, the husband has been cheating, should her friend still act on her perfect duty not to lie and tell her yes? If she were to confirm the wife's accusations, she would commit suicide. Regardless if the husband has been cheating, it is in the wife's best interest to tell her that he has not been cheating in order to spare her her …show more content…

I think other people could argue against my beliefs to agree with Kant that no matter what circumstance people may find them in, we should never lie because it is our perfect duty. For instance, someone could argue against the murder at the door example and say that perhaps the murderer enters the home anyway and finds the person he has been in search for. What would happen to the person who lied? Even so, that person could leave the house and call the police, which would ultimately help the situation; in addition, his or her friend would know that the person letting them hide did all they could do to protect them. Also, someone could object to my argument that lying helps a person ease through social encounters and trivial matters. Take the social encounter example into consideration; someone could argue against me and say that maybe the one fibbing about how he has been doing does not look the way he says he is feeling. For example, he may say he is doing fine, but his facial expressions and body language say differently. Typically, however, asking someone how he or she has been is usually just a courtesy, and the person asking does not really expect a lengthy reply. Saying “I’m doing great,” is a courteous response because both people can carry on their way and avoid an awkward situation. Furthermore, a person could argue against my ideas of

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