Kant's Moral Philosophy: Good Will, Epictetus's Detachment, and Ethics

This essay delves into Immanuel Kant's moral philosophy, focusing on his concept of good will as presented in his 'Groundwork of Metaphysics of Morals.' Kant argues that good will is essential for human moral responsibility, defining it as a will determined by moral law. The essay explores Kant's ideas of duty, imperatives, and the constraints moral law places on human desires. It contrasts Kant's views with those of the Stoic philosopher Epictetus, who emphasized detachment from uncontrollable external events and the importance of focusing on internal states and self-management. The essay concludes by arguing that Epictetus's concept of detachment of free will is more logically convincing than Kant's, as it acknowledges the reality of uncontrollable external factors in life. The essay references Kant's and Epictetus's views on human desires, morality, and free will, drawing on the insights of scholars who have analyzed and compared these philosophical positions. The essay also touches upon the application of moral principles in practical situations.

Running head: KANT’S MORAL PHILOSOPHY
Kant’s Moral Philosophy
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Introduction:
Kant’s explanation of good will is present in the first section of his book ‘Groundwork of
Metaphysics of Moral”. In this first section of the book, the argument that Immanuel Kant
provides is that there are two distinct features of moral goodness, from the conception of
goodness. He then further moves on to describe the formula of the universal law. Contrary to this
argument, Epictetus and Hobbes presents two alternate explanations of will and ethics. The
following essay deals with the explanation of how Kant used the good will to argue for the
human moral responsibility and also presents the thesis statement that Epictetus’s concept of
detachment of free will is logically more convincing than that of Kant’s.
Discussion:
According to Immanuel Kant, the concept of good will begins with the human
personality. As per his definition of good will, he says that the notion of good will si associated
with the idea of a good person or the idea of his good heart. The fundamental argument that he
proposes in his book is that a person has a good will only is he possesses a will which is
determined by moral law. If the human will performs decisions on the basis of morality, only
then human will is considered to be good will (Kant, 2017). The person should be performing
tasks and taking decisions morally and whose behavior is guided by the moral considerations.
Kant also says that a person with this sort of character is always valued. He says that if a person
uses his moral worth in certain circumstances, only because he had been committed to his moral
considerations, he would be a better person. Moreover according to him, a strong maintenance
and the commitment to the moral principles is worth taking a notice (Velkley, 2014). In the

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philosopher’s terms, good will should be possessed by every person , irrespective of certain
circumstances or moral demands. This according to him is the moral law. Human beings
inevitably feel this Law as a constraint on their natural desires, which is why such Laws, as
applied to human beings, are imperatives and duties. He also explains that the duty of an
individual motivates the moral law of a person which is often considered to be a restriction
against the human desires (Aune, 2014). The human desires are present in a person
independently wand have the ability to operate without the demands of the moral will. However
this makes the goodness in the human beings a mere constraint. He also puts forward his
argument that the expression of good will is not possible with the dutiful actions of the motives
of self interest, or sympathy and happiness. According to the argument that the proposed, he also
said that the morality of the human beings depend upon their management of their desires and
will. He said that the human beings should control their free will and transform them into good
will which should be filled with the moral decisions. This morality should be used in order to
modify the natural s well as the social world (Willaschek, 2017).
In comparison to this, there has been the argument of Epictetus, who had been a Stoic
Philosopher and who presented his argument on will and ethic. He has always been a believer of
living life with ethical means and with utmost honor in the social platform. He argued that
despite of the personal conditions, and despite the personal desires, the people does have the
ability to live with utmost pride and with discipline (Altman, 2014). He argued with Kant on the
fact that people should not spend their time in focusing on the aspects of human desire that they
cannot control. Rather , the individuals should be concentrating on the aspects that they have the
ability to change and control because the negative things in the life are never helpful. He was
chiefly concerned with individual freedom and with self management. He did have his influence

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on the moral tradition but he had been someone more than a moralizer. He provided a whole new
definition to Moral agency (Dryde & Stil, 2018). He says that the moral agency or the morality is
the internal state of an individual. He associates the concept of free will as a different form of
Freedom with the moral agent. He also preached that the philosophy is the way of life and it is
beyond the theoretical aspects or discipline (Stojanovic, 2014). As Kant explained that the
human desire should be inherent of the moral philosophies and that the deeds should include the
moral worth, Epictetus taught the entire world that the human desires are beyond pour control.
He said that all the external events cannot be controlled by individuals and a person should be
accepting the occurrences dispassionately without any external thought sand considerations. He
also said that the human beings have the ability to move beyond their will and detach their
desires from the world. This the termed as good will. He asked the people to concentrate upon
this and their impersonal forces and base their morality or ethics upon them (Stephens, 2014).
Conclusion:
Thus from the above discussion it can be concluded that the theory of Epictetus is the
most logical one as compared to Kant because he said that the human desires are something
which are beyond the control of the individuals. It is logical and very realistic because in life
there are several external events and factors which are not in the control of humanity and if
people tries to conclude them, there would be an ambience of negativity that would persist.
Freedom of will is something different to that of good will and morality. The philosophy of
Epictetus is also the most convincing because he asks the people to focus on the positive things
of the life and concentrate upon those, than controlling the aspects which are uncontrollable.

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References:
Altman, M. C. (2014). Kant and applied ethics: The uses and limits of Kant's practical
philosophy. John Wiley & Sons.
Aune, B. (2014). Kant's theory of morals. Princeton University Press.
Dryden, W., & Still, A. (2018). The historical and philosophical context of rational
psychotherapy: The legacy of Epictetus. Routledge.
Kant, I. (2017). Kant: The metaphysics of morals. Cambridge University Press.
Stephens, W. O. (2014). Epictetus on Beastly Vices and Animal Virtues. Epictetus: His
Continuing Influence and Contemporary Relevance (Rochester NY), 207-239.
Stojanovic, P. (2014). Epictetus and Moral Apprehensive Impressions in Stoicism.
Velkley, R. L. (2014). Freedom and the End of Reason: On the Moral Foundation of Kant's
Critical Philosophy. University of Chicago Press.
Willaschek, M. (2017). Why the Doctrine of Right does not belong in the Metaphysics of
Morals: On some Basic Distinctions in Kant’s Moral Philosophy. In Immanuel Kant (pp.
49-71). Routledge.

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