48 Moral Philosophy: Ideas of Good and Evil, Right and Wrongwe have that ability. Indeed, we must have that ability. He grants
that the environment has an effect on us, but in the final analysis
we have the will to choose freely, right or wrong.
2) The immortality of the soul. The idea of the soul which
transcends our brief existence on this earth is also one of Kant’s
premises. He maintains that some of the choices we are faced
with must be seen in a context larger than the immediate results
that a particular choice will produce. The concept of a spirit, an
everlasting aspect of our being, must necessarily be taken into
account in making moral choices. Moral choices are too impor
tant to be made simply on the basis of whether or not we will be
pleased with the results for the moment.
3) The existence of God. There is a standard which exists for
all men, set by the Author of the Universe, which we are duty
bound to try to meet. The idea of a standard, set by ourselves,
changing whenever we feel the mood or inclination to change,
evolving as we grow older, determined by accidents of birth,
birthplace, nationality, and culture would render ethics use
less— sociology would be more important.
Obviously there are contrary opinions about these three
requirements set by Kant. Is it necessary to believe in God in
order to be good or to be able to tell good from evil? Must one
look to eternity in order to be good, or can one see the value of
good conduct in this life, for this life? And if, indeed, we are
conditioned to be one thing or another, does that render us
incompetent to make valid judgments about the acts we witness
or perform? We will be looking for answers to these questions,
from existentialists, hedonists, pragmatists, and others. We will
however, begin with the traditional view, and use it as a starting
point, to be developed or challenged.
Ethical inquiry employs two methods from which determina
tions as to the rightness or wrongness of human conduct are
made. A priori— which means “before experience”—deals with
postulates which are considered to be self-evident, and deduces
moral judgments from the premise. Some a priori postulates—
One should do good and avoid evil; all men are equal before
God, or before the law. A posteriori— “after experience”— deals
with judgments which we make on the basis of our experiences,
from which we determine the rights and wrongs of human
conduct inductively. Some a posteriori examples— we see how