Keep it simple. It will get complex all by itself.
Sometimes those of us who write opinion pieces or teach philosophy fail to follow this advice. Complexity rules, and the results are chaos and confusion.
In our times it feels like we have lost sight of some basic truths of what is right or wrong — of historic, universal principles that have guided us through harsh times before.
Perhaps it’s time to get back to basics.
One of the great moral teachers of the past was the 18th-century philosopher Immanuel Kant, who sought to describe a rational, universal basis for ethics. Perhaps that’s why in this era when we don’t believe in universal truths, he is often neglected.
I believe he offers us a way out of our moral confusion — how to judge right from wrong — in a way so simple even children understand.
Kant’s ethical approach is called the categorical imperative — a way to understand ourselves that is breathtakingly simple but imminently practical. It has a number of categories, two of which help define what is right or wrong.
First is called the universal principle — so act that if your actions were realized they would be good for everyone.
Second is the requirement to treat people as ends, not means to something else.
I contend you can apply these two principles to your own behavior or that of others.
Here are the two basic questions to ask using the categorical imperative as a guide:
1. Is what I or others are doing good for everyone, not just myself?
2. Is what I or others are doing treating others as ends unto themselves or as a means to some other end?
I have myself failed Kant’s criteria for ethical behavior more often than I care to name. I sometimes have made selfish decisions to benefit myself, even when hurting others. I have also treated others as a means to some other end.
If some of Kant’s ethics feel like the Golden Rule, you would not be wrong in your assessment.
But here’s the catch. Everyone falls short and has failed in some ethical lapses, but the trick is admitting your shortcomings and asking forgiveness from those you have hurt. Without these, forgiveness and new beginnings are laden with guilt and incompleteness.
John C. Morgan taught ethics for many years and writes about it in columns, articles, and books. He can be reached at drjohncmorgan@yahoo.com. His column appears weekly at readingeagle.com.
