Kant on Human Dignity

Kant on Human Dignity PDF Author: Oliver Sensen
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110267160
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 245

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Book Description
Immanuel Kant is often considered to be the source of the contemporary idea of human dignity, but his conception of human dignity and its relation to human value and to the requirement to respect others have not been widely understood. Kant on Human Dignity offers the first in-depth study in English of this subject. Based on a comprehensive analysis of all the passages in which Kant uses the term ‘dignity’, as well as an analysis of the most prominent arguments for a value of human beings in the Kant literature, the book carefully examines different ways of construing the relationship between dignity, value and respect for others. It takes seriously Kant’s Copernican Revolution in moral philosophy: Kant argues that moral imperatives cannot be based on any values without yielding heteronomy. Instead it is imperatives of reason that determine what is valuable. The requirement to respect all human beings is one such imperative. Respect for human beings does not follow from human dignity—for this would violate autonomy—but is an unconditional command of reason. Following this train of thought yields a unified account of Kant’s moral philosophy.

Kant on Human Dignity

Kant on Human Dignity PDF Author: Oliver Sensen
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110267160
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 245

Get Book Here

Book Description
Immanuel Kant is often considered to be the source of the contemporary idea of human dignity, but his conception of human dignity and its relation to human value and to the requirement to respect others have not been widely understood. Kant on Human Dignity offers the first in-depth study in English of this subject. Based on a comprehensive analysis of all the passages in which Kant uses the term ‘dignity’, as well as an analysis of the most prominent arguments for a value of human beings in the Kant literature, the book carefully examines different ways of construing the relationship between dignity, value and respect for others. It takes seriously Kant’s Copernican Revolution in moral philosophy: Kant argues that moral imperatives cannot be based on any values without yielding heteronomy. Instead it is imperatives of reason that determine what is valuable. The requirement to respect all human beings is one such imperative. Respect for human beings does not follow from human dignity—for this would violate autonomy—but is an unconditional command of reason. Following this train of thought yields a unified account of Kant’s moral philosophy.

Human Dignity and the Kingdom of Ends

Human Dignity and the Kingdom of Ends PDF Author: Jan-Willem van der Rijt
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000520226
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 392

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Book Description
This book advances our understanding of the nature, grounds and limits of human dignity by connecting it with Kant’s notion of an ideal moral community, or "Kingdom of Ends". It features original essays by leading Kant scholars and moral and political philosophers from around the world. Although Kant’s influential injunction to treat humanity as an end in itself and never merely as a means has garnered the most attention among those interested in analyzing human dignity with a Kantian lens, Kant himself places much more emphasis on the Kingdom of Ends as crucial for defining human dignity. The chapters in this collection focus not only on interpretive issues related to the Kingdom of Ends but also on practical applications that have the potential to advance discussions about the nature and foundations of rights, the content of moral principles, the importance of moral ideals and attitudes and the nature of moral motivation. Exploring and connecting the ideas of human dignity and the Kingdom of Ends significantly deepens our moral understanding, advances discussions in moral and political philosophy and enhances our appreciation of Kant’s moral theory. Human Dignity and the Kingdom of Ends: Kantian Perspectives and Practical Applications will appeal to scholars and advanced students of Kant, moral philosophy, political philosophy, and political theory.

The Value of Humanity in Kant's Moral Theory

The Value of Humanity in Kant's Moral Theory PDF Author: Richard Dean
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199285721
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 281

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Book Description
The humanity formulation of Kant's Categorical Imperative demands that we treat humanity as an end in itself. Because this principle resonates with currently influential ideals of human rights and dignity, contemporary readers often find it compelling, even if the rest of Kant's moral philosophy leaves them cold. Moreover, some prominent specialists in Kant's ethics have recently turned to the humanity formulation as the most theoretically central and promising principle of Kant'sethics. Nevertheless, it has received less attention than many other aspects of Kant's ethics. Richard Dean offers the most sustained and systematic examination of the humanity formulation to date. He presents an original analysis of what it means to treat humanity as an end in itself, and examinesthe implications both for Kant scholarship and for practical guidance on specific moral issues.

Dignity

Dignity PDF Author: Michael Rosen
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674065514
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 199

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Book Description
Dignity plays a central role in thinking about law and human rights, but there is sharp disagreement about its meaning. Combining conceptual precision with a broad historical background, Rosen puts these controversies in context and offers a novel, constructive proposal. He also answers a puzzling question: why treat the dead with dignity?

The Cambridge Handbook of Human Dignity

The Cambridge Handbook of Human Dignity PDF Author: Marcus Düwell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107782406
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1130

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Book Description
This introduction to human dignity explores the history of the notion from antiquity to the nineteenth century, and the way in which dignity is conceptualised in non-Western contexts. Building on this, it addresses a range of systematic conceptualisations, considers the theoretical and legal conditions for human dignity as a useful notion and analyses a number of philosophical and conceptual approaches to dignity. Finally, the book introduces current debates, paying particular attention to the legal implementation, human rights, justice and conflicts, medicine and bioethics, and provides an explicit systematic framework for discussing human dignity. Adopting a wide range of perspectives and taking into account numerous cultures and contexts, this handbook is a valuable resource for students, scholars and professionals working in philosophy, law, history and theology.

Kantian Ethics, Dignity and Perfection

Kantian Ethics, Dignity and Perfection PDF Author: Paul Formosa
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107189241
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 231

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Book Description
A clear and original perspective on Kantian ethics that focuses on the dignity, vulnerability and perfectibility of human rational agency.

Kant’s Concept of Dignity

Kant’s Concept of Dignity PDF Author: Yasushi Kato
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 3110661497
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 340

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Book Description
Nearly all philosophers refer to Kant when debating the concept of dignity, and many approve of Kant’s conception, unaware of the tensions between Kant’s conception and the modern idea of dignity intimately connected to the idea of human rights. What exactly is Kant's conception of dignity? Is there a connecting tie between dignity and the legal sphere of human rights at all? Does Kant’s concept refer to a superior status human beings seem to own in comparison to non-rational beings? Or does it refer to an absolute value? The contributions of this volume are organised in five broader topics. In the first section tensions within the Kantian conception of dignity are discussed (C. Horn, D. Birnbacher, G. Schönrich). The second group of articles illuminates the intimate connections between dignity and human rights (R. Mosayebi, M. Kettner). The third group discusses the prevailing moral conception of dignity (S. Yamatsuta, S. Shell, O. Sensen). The fourth group focuses on the relation of dignity and end in itself (T. Hill, D. Sturma, A. Wood). The central theme of the fifth group of contributions are the social, political, and cultural dimensions of dignity (Y. Kato, K. Ameriks, K. Flikschuh, T. Saito).

Dignity, Rank, and Rights

Dignity, Rank, and Rights PDF Author: Jeremy Waldron
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199915431
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 164

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Book Description
This volume collects two lectures by Jeremy Waldron that were originally given as Berkeley Tanner Lectures along with responses to the lectures from Wai Chee Dimock, Don Herzog, and Michael Rosen; a reply to the responses by Waldron; and an introduction by Meir Dan-Cohen.

Dignity

Dignity PDF Author: Remy Debes
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190677546
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 437

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Book Description
In everything from philosophical ethics to legal argument to public activism, it has become commonplace to appeal to the idea of human dignity. In such contexts, the concept of dignity typically signifies something like the fundamental moral status belonging to all humans. Remarkably, however, it is only in the last century that this meaning of the term has become standardized. Before this, dignity was instead a concept associated with social status. Unfortunately, this transformation remains something of a mystery in existing scholarship. Exactly when and why did "dignity" change its meaning? And before this change, was it truly the case that we lacked a conception of human worth akin to the one that "dignity" now represents? In this volume, leading scholars across a range of disciplines attempt to answer such questions by clarifying the presently murky history of "dignity," from classical Greek thought through the Middle Ages and Enlightenment to the present day.

Human Dignity

Human Dignity PDF Author: George Kateb
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674048377
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 257

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Book Description
We often speak of the dignity owed to a person. And dignity is a word that regularly appears in political speeches. Charters are promulgated in its name, and appeals to it are made when people all over the world struggle to achieve their rights. But what exactly is dignity? When one person physically assaults another, we feel the wrong demands immediate condemnation and legal sanction. Whereas when one person humiliates or thoughtlessly makes use of another, we recognize the wrong and hope for a remedy, but the social response is less clear. The injury itself may be hard to quantify. Given our concern with human dignity, it is odd that it has received comparatively little scrutiny. Here, George Kateb asks what human dignity is and why it matters for the claim to rights. He proposes that dignity is an “existential” value that pertains to the identity of a person as a human being. To injure or even to try to efface someone’s dignity is to treat that person as not human or less than human—as a thing or instrument or subhuman creature. Kateb does not limit the notion of dignity to individuals but extends it to the human species. The dignity of the human species rests on our uniqueness among all other species. In the book’s concluding section, he argues that despite the ravages we have inflicted on it, nature would be worse off without humanity. The supremely fitting task of humanity can be seen as a “stewardship” of nature. This secular defense of human dignity—the first book-length attempt of its kind—crowns the career of a distinguished political thinker.