Kantian moral universalism, the “Enlightenment Project” and experimental ethics

A Kantian ethics approach to moral bioenhancement

It seems, at first glance, that a Kantian ethics approach to moral enhancement would tend towards the position that there could be no place for emotional modulation in any understanding of the endeavour, owing to the typically understood view that Kantian ethics does not allow any role for emotion in morality as a whole. It seems then that any account of moral bioenhancement which places emotio...

Gadamer’s Ambivalence toward the Enlightenment Project

This essay explores Gadamer’s ambivalent relationship with modernity.  Gadamer is a prominent critic of the Enlightenment project.  His criticisms are both theoretical and practical.  Theoretically, representationalism is at the center of modern epistemology for Gadamer.  Practically, Gadamer sees the demotion of prudence (phronesis) as fundamental to the “bad” Enlightenment.  Gadamer’s attempt...

Civility, Enlightenment, and Society: Conceptual Confusions and Kantian Remedies

Kantian Ethics And Jain Spiritual-Ethical Conducts

The name of Kant, a German philosopher (1724-1804) is immortal in the history of modern western Philosophy. Prime reason for this has been his simple life of abstinence and continuous ethical thinking. He lived a much disciplined life. He is believed to have practiced his routine life more strictly than the watch itself. From waking up in the morning to going to the bed at night, every minute o...

The concept of autonomy and its role in Kantian ethics.

Among bioethicists, and perhaps ethicists generally, the idea that we are obliged to respect autonomy is something of a shibboleth. Appeals to autonomy are commonly put to work to support legal and moral claims about the importance of consent, but they also feed a wider discourse in which the patient’s desires are granted a very high importance and medical paternalism is regarded as almost self...