友情提示:如果本网页打开太慢或显示不完整,请尝试鼠标右键“刷新”本网页!
合租小说网 返回本书目录 加入书签 我的书架 我的书签 TXT全本下载 『收藏到我的浏览器』

the critique of practical reason-第16部分

快捷操作: 按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页 按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页 按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部! 如果本书没有阅读完,想下次继续接着阅读,可使用上方 "收藏到我的浏览器" 功能 和 "加入书签" 功能!


l nature (in its pure form as an object of the understanding) as the type of the judgement; hence; the present remark will serve to guard against reckoning amongst concepts themselves that which belongs only to the typic of concepts。 This; namely; as a typic of the judgement; guards against the empiricism of practical reason; which founds the practical notions of good and evil merely on experienced consequences (so…called happiness)。 No doubt happiness and the infinite advantages which would result from a will determined by self…love; if this will at the same time erected itself into a universal law of nature; may certainly serve as a perfectly suitable type of the morally good; but it is not identical with it。 The same typic guards also against the mysticism of practical reason; which turns what served only as a symbol into a schema; that is; proposes to provide for the moral concepts actual intuitions; which; however; are not sensible (intuitions of an invisible Kingdom of God); and thus plunges into the transcendent。 What is befitting the use of the moral concepts is only the rationalism of the judgement; which takes from the sensible system of nature only what pure reason can also conceive of itself; that is; conformity to law; and transfers into the supersensible nothing but what can conversely be actually exhibited by actions in the world of sense according to the formal rule of a law of nature。 However; the caution against empiricism of practical reason is much more important; for mysticism is quite reconcilable with the purity and sublimity of the moral law; and; besides; it is not very natural or agreeable to common habits of thought to strain one's imagination to supersensible intuitions; and hence the danger on this side is not so general。 Empiricism; on the contrary; cuts up at the roots the morality of intentions (in which; and not in actions only; consists the high worth that men can and ought to give to themselves); and substitutes for duty something quite different; namely; an empirical interest; with which the inclinations generally are secretly leagued; and empiricism; moreover; being on this account allied with all the inclinations which (no matter what fashion they put on) degrade humanity when they are raised to the dignity of a supreme practical principle; and as these; nevertheless; are so favourable to everyone's feelings; it is for that reason much more dangerous than mysticism; which can never constitute a lasting condition of any great number of persons。     CHAPTER III。 Of the Motives of Pure Practical Reason。

  What is essential in the moral worth of actions is that the moral law should directly determine the will。 If the determination of the will takes place in conformity indeed to the moral law; but only by means of a feeling; no matter of what kind; which has to be presupposed in order that the law may be sufficient to determine the will; and therefore not for the sake of the law; then the action will possess legality; but not morality。 Now; if we understand by motive (elater animi) the subjective ground of determination of the will of a being whose reason does not necessarily conform to the objective law; by virtue of its own nature; then it will follow; first; that not motives can be attributed to the Divine will; and that the motives of the human will (as well as that of every created rational being) can never be anything else than the moral law; and consequently that the objective principle of determination must always and alone be also the subjectively sufficient determining principle of the action; if this is not merely to fulfil the letter of the law; without containing its spirit。*

  *We may say of every action that conforms to the law; but is not done for the sake of the law; that it is morally good in the letter; not in the spirit (the intention)。

  Since; then; for the purpose of giving the moral law influence over the will; we must not seek for any other motives that might enable us to dispense with the motive of the law itself; because that would produce mere hypocrisy; without consistency; and it is even dangerous to allow other motives (for instance; that of interest) even to co…operate along with the moral law; hence nothing is left us but to determine carefully in what way the moral law becomes a motive; and what effect this has upon the faculty of desire。 For as to the question how a law can be directly and of itself a determining principle of the will (which is the essence of morality); this is; for human reason; an insoluble problem and identical with the question: how a free will is possible。 Therefore what we have to show a priori is not why the moral law in itself supplies a motive; but what effect it; as such; produces (or; more correctly speaking; must produce) on the mind。   The essential point in every determination of the will by the moral law is that being a free will it is determined simply by the moral law; not only without the co…operation of sensible impulses; but even to the rejection of all such; and to the checking of all inclinations so far as they might be opposed to that law。 So far; then; the effect of the moral law as a motive is only negative; and this motive can be known a priori to be such。 For all inclination and every sensible impulse is founded on feeling; and the negative effect produced on feeling (by the check on the inclinations) is itself feeling; consequently; we can see a priori that the moral law; as a determining principle of the will; must by thwarting all our inclinations produce a feeling which may be called pain; and in this we have the first; perhaps the only; instance in which we are able from a priori considerations to determine the relation of a cognition (in this case of pure practical reason) to the feeling of pleasure or displeasure。 All the inclinations together (which can be reduced to a tolerable system; in which case their satisfaction is called happiness) constitute self…regard (solipsismus)。 This is either the self…love that consists in an excessive fondness for oneself (philautia); or satisfaction with oneself (arrogantia)。 The former is called particularly selfishness; the latter self…conceit。 Pure practical reason only checks selfishness; looking on it as natural and active in us even prior to the moral law; so far as to limit it to the condition of agreement with this law; and then it is called rational self…love。 But self…conceit reason strikes down altogether; since all claims to self…esteem which precede agreement with the moral law are vain and unjustifiable; for the certainty of a state of mind that coincides with this law is the first condition of personal worth (as we shall presently show more clearly); and prior to this conformity any pretension to worth is false and unlawful。 Now the propensity to self…esteem is one of the inclinations which the moral law checks; inasmuch as that esteem rests only on morality。 Therefore the moral law breaks down self…conceit。 But as this law is something positive in itself; namely; the form of an intellectual causality; that is; of freedom; it must be an object of respect; for; by opposing the subjective antagonism of the inclinations; it weakens self…conceit; and since it even breaks down; that is; humiliates; this conceit; it is an object of the highest respect and; consequently; is the foundation of a positive feeling which is not of empirical origin; but is known a priori。 Therefore respect for the moral law is a feeling which is produced by an intellectual cause; and this feeling is the only one that we know quite a priori and the necessity of which we can perceive。   In the preceding chapter we have seen that everything that presents itself as an object of the will prior to the moral law is by that law itself; which is the supreme condition of practical reason; excluded from the determining principles of the will which we have called the unconditionally good; and that the mere practical form which consists in the adaptation of the maxims to universal legislation first determines what is good in itself and absolutely; and is the basis of the maxims of a pure will; which alone is good in every respect。 However; we find that our nature as sensible beings is such that the matter of desire (objects of inclination; whether of hope or fear) first presents itself to us; and our pathologically affected self; although it is in its maxims quite unfit for universal legislation; yet; just as if it constituted our entire self; strives to put its pretensions forward first; and to have them acknowledged as the first and original。 This propensity to make ourselves in the subjective determining principles of our choice serve as the objective determining principle of the will generally may be called self…love; and if this pretends to be legislative as an unconditional practical principle it may be called self…conceit。 Now the moral law; which alone is truly objective (namely; in every respect); entirely excludes the influence of self…love on the supreme practical principle; and indefinitely checks the self…conceit that prescribes the subjective conditions of the former as laws。 Now whatever checks our self…conceit in our own judgement humiliates; therefore the moral law inevitably humbles every man when he compares with it the physical propensities of his nature。 That; the idea of which as a determining principle of our will humbles us in our self…consciousness; awakes respect for itself; so far as it is itself positive and a determining principle。 Therefore the moral law is even subjectively a cause of respect。 Now since everything that enters into self…love belongs to inclination; and all inclination rests on feelings; and consequently whatever checks all the feelings together in self…love has necessarily; by this very circumstance; an influence on feeling; hence we comprehend how it is possible to perceive a priori that the moral law can produce an effect on feeling; in that it excludes the inclinations and the propensity to make them the supreme practical condition; i。e。; self…love; from all participation in the supreme legislation。 This effect is on one side merely negative; but on the other side; relatively to the restricting principle of pure practical reason; it is positive。 No special kin
返回目录 上一页 下一页 回到顶部 0 0
快捷操作: 按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页 按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页 按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!
温馨提示: 温看小说的同时发表评论,说出自己的看法和其它小伙伴们分享也不错哦!发表书评还可以获得积分和经验奖励,认真写原创书评 被采纳为精评可以获得大量金币、积分和经验奖励哦!