Ethical Journal Entry

Kantian ethics is an approach to ethics created by Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher, in the late 18th century. Kant believed that some actions such as murder, theft and lying were absolutely prohibited, even if the prevoiusly mentioned actions do more good than harm. When using Kantian ethics, you must ask yourself two questions: “can I rationally will that everyone act as I propose to act? If the answer is no, then you must not perform the action. The second question you must ask yourself is, “Does my action respect the goals of human beings rather than merely using them for my own purposes?” If the answer is no, then you must not perform the action. Considering the ethical implications of my CAS project, them being: I must remain unbiased, and I must acknowledge different perspectives; I can/will use these ethical values in my daily life by first thinking in different perspectives in an unbiased manner; and once I have all the knowledge I can possibly gain regarding a certain event or issue utilize the Kantian approach to ethics by asking myself is it for personal gain or if it strictly adheres to the agreed upon values of my CAS project. In essence, I will ask myself two questions mentioned in the beginning to determine whether or not my decisions adhere to the agreed values of my CAS project and the imperatives dictated by the Kantian approach to ethics.

An example of how I’ve used this in my daily life is when I taught the 9th graders about the process of MUN. I taught them how to look at issues with a different point of view, which will be useful for them to know in the MUN.