Common Sense of Duty
Kant states that there is nothing "which can be regarded as good without qualification, except a good will." A good will is the moral compass that always seeks good: if an agent fails, it is not the fault of the good will but of the agent's ability to carry it out.
In the opening section, Kant explains what is commonly meant by moral obligations and duty. It is fairly common sense, he writes, not to consider moral an act done out of inclination for the self. A shopkeeper with honest prices does so foremost to be respected by his customers, not for the sake of honesty. He "deserves praise and encouragement, but not esteem." It is common knowledge that the people for whose good actions there is no reward are those who act most morally. Kant revises this in his declaration that they are the only people acting morally. We esteem a man who gives up his life because he gains nothing in doing so. "Duty is the necessity to act out of reverence for the law." Thus, to follow the moral law, the intrinsic sense of right and wrong, is our greatest obligation.
Read more about this topic: Groundwork Of The Metaphysic Of Morals
Famous quotes containing the words common sense, common, sense and/or duty:
“Common sense should tell us that reading is the ultimate weapon—destroying ignorance, poverty and despair before they can destroy us. A nation that doesn’t read much doesn’t know much. And a nation that doesn’t know much is more likely to make poor choices in the home, the marketplace, the jury box and the voting booth...The challenge, therefore, is to convince future generations of children that carrying a book is more rewarding than carrying guns.”
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“A true account of the actual is the rarest poetry, for common sense always takes a hasty and superficial view.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Life is mostly froth and bubble.
Two things stand like stone:
Dodging duty at the double,
Leaving work alone.”
—Anonymous.