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Immanuel Kant Vs Aristotle

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As I was rummaging through the list of philosophers, Googling back and forth between each name, I decided that I resonated the most with Immanuel Kant’s ideas of ethics. One thought that I liked that Kant had was that he believes that one should make decisions or do something based on whether or not they think it is the right thing to do and if they believe it is in fact their “duty” to do so. This idea makes him a Deontologist. I decided to focus on this particular thought because it contrasts with Aristotle’s ideas, as Aristotle is a philosopher that we have studied. Along with this, I do agree with Kant’s idea that a person should do something such as tell the truth or aid someone in need if it is the right thing to do. Kant’s idea differs from Aristotle’s theory in a couple of ways. For starters, Kant believes that one should make decisions or do something based on whether or not they think it is the right thing to …show more content…

A person chooses to do something according to the “maxim,” or principle, and is only motivated by these principles, while with Aristotle’s theory, the idea of happiness is what motivates the person to carry out their actions. Aristotelianism focuses on what the best person to be is, while Deontology focuses on what the best thing to do is. I believe that people should not be virtuous or doing the right thing if it will make their image or who they are look better. I believe that if one honestly thinks that an action is the right thing to do, then they should carry out that action. For example, if I were in a situation in which I know a friend of mine witnessed a crime happen, I would tell her to do what she thinks is morally right, whether it was to ignore the situation

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