Kant: Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals

Mary Gregor, Jens Timmermann

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9781107008519
• eBook ISBN: 9781139368735
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: History & Theory of Philosophy

Published in 1785, Immanuel Kant's Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals ranks alongside Plato's Republic and Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics as one of the most profound and influential works in moral philosophy ever written. In Kant's own words, its aim is to identify and corroborate the supreme principle of morality, the categorical imperative. He argues that human beings are ends in themselves, never to be used by anyone merely as a means, and that universal and unconditional obligations must be understood as an expression of the human capacity for autonomy and self-governance. As such, they are laws of freedom. This volume contains Mary Gregor's acclaimed translation of the text into English, revised by Jens Timmermann, and an accessible, updated introduction by Christine Korsgaard.

Table of contents

• Cover
• IMMANUEL KANT: Groundwork of the Metaphysicsof Morals
• Series
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface to the revised edition
• Introduction
• Chronology
• Further reading
• Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals
• Preface
• First section: Transition from common to philosophical moral rational cognition
• Second section: Transition from popular moral philosophy to the metaphysics of morals
• Third section: Transition from the metaphysics of morals to the critique of pure practical reason
• Notes
• Selected glossary
• Index