Philosophy Kant\'s Theories of Good Will One

Philosophy

Kant's Theories of Good Will

One of Kant's examples of good well is an action that is taken with good intentions; he calls it good because the volition of the action is good. There is no good will in an action taken for the good it might do for others or for the good it might do potentially for the person taking the action. Kant's sense of good will dictates that good will is not good for what the consequences it effects. Kant's concept of good will dictates that something is not good because of how appropriate the action is toward accomplishing a specific end. Even if the action taken did not result in the desired action or even a good action, the value of the good will is not lost, forgotten, or diminished.

Good will rises above personal motivation or desire of the person taking the action and for whom the action benefits. He further argues that just about any activity can contribute to the cultivation of good will within a person, if that person carries with him/her awareness of good will during participation. He additionally writes that neglect of good will and lack of the potential for good will cultivation in all activities makes that person and those activities susceptible to becoming evil and lacking reason for participation in any activity. Essentially the argument is that if one does not act with good will or participate in an activity with awareness of good will, then that activity is a waste of time and brings danger of moral and spiritual corruption. These ideas are a part of larger, yet more subtle argument for the concept of inner worth over material wealth. Kant's ideas intentionally or unintentionally have more eastern or Buddhist suppositions.

Another example that Kant provides as evidence of good will is reason. Kant writes that when people cultivate reason, the true unconditional wisdom of nature becomes clear. The greatest exercise of reason is the cultivation and practice of good will. He states that the greatest practical application of reason and of wisdom is the development and diffusion of good will in a person's life. Reason, wisdom, and good will help people find unconditional happiness by performing actions whose satisfaction are themselves. Actions of the Kantian sense of good will contribute to self happiness and societal happiness. Such actions also help people distinguish between what he calls will and what he calls duty. There is some overlap in his ideas, but the main difference is that will augments or diminishes reason, happiness, and wisdom depending on the nature of the actions taken.