Which deontological system by Kant asserts morality is determined by logical consistency and duty?

Which deontological system by Kant asserts morality is determined by logical consistency and duty?

• A. Ethical Formalism
• B. Categorical Imperative
• C. Natural Law
• D. Virtue Ethics

Answer: (A)

Morality in Kant’s framework is determined by the form of the rule guiding an action and by acting from pure duty, not by the consequences of the act. Actions are right because the maxim behind them can be willed as a universal law and because rational beings must be treated as ends in themselves. This emphasis on universalizability and duty is what we call ethical formalism—the view that moral rightness rests on the formal properties of maxims and the necessity of duty, rather than on outcomes. The Categorical Imperative is the tool Kant uses to test those maxims, but the overall approach is ethical formalism. Natural Law grounds morality in human nature and good purposes; Virtue Ethics centers on character and flourishing. So the system that captures morality through logical consistency and duty is ethical formalism.

Morality in Kant’s framework is determined by the form of the rule guiding an action and by acting from pure duty, not by the consequences of the act. Actions are right because the maxim behind them can be willed as a universal law and because rational beings must be treated as ends in themselves. This emphasis on universalizability and duty is what we call ethical formalism—the view that moral rightness rests on the formal properties of maxims and the necessity of duty, rather than on outcomes. The Categorical Imperative is the tool Kant uses to test those maxims, but the overall approach is ethical formalism. Natural Law grounds morality in human nature and good purposes; Virtue Ethics centers on character and flourishing. So the system that captures morality through logical consistency and duty is ethical formalism.