Respect——a Very Important Moral Feeling In The System Of Kant’s Ethics

There has always been two opposite opinions about the origin of morality and moral foundation foundation. Moral rationalists believe that the basis of morality is moral reasoning. Moral feeling is just a instinctive impulse, which need to be restrained by rationality; however, moral emotionalist hold the opinion that the basis of morality is moral sensibility, and only sensibility can reveal people’s sensual life and nature of freedom. Compared with moral emotionalism, moral rationalism has a long and clear development in history of western ethics. It developed from Socrates to the Stoics and to Descartes, Spinoza, and finally to Kant who pushed it to its peak. Kant’s rational subject ethics has become an insurmountable peak. But Kant did not abandon moral feeling, on the other hand, he proposed the concept of respect as a moral feeling.To understand Kant’s thought of respect,first we should place it in the relation between moral emotion and moral rationality. Second, we should clarify the background of respect, connotation and function of respect, difference between respect and general feelings and so on. Respect is an import concept in Kant’s philosophy. Respect is compulsively bond with human will by rationality, and impels people to pursue ultimate good as a subjective motivation. Respect originates from practical rationality which comes from moral law. When moral law makes provision of free will, respect emerges. The object of respect can only be moral law. The condition of respect is the dual nature of the human existence. Perfectly rational being does not need to have respect, because it won’t come across any obstacle when practicing moral laws; irrational being can only obey natural law of causation because it is unable to set purposes itself, so there is no source for respect. Therefore, respect can only come from human being who is dual existence.As a practical motive. The moral law rejects sensible impulses then Produce Pains, but it will produce the respect when the moral law tries to be the practical motive.Respect is the emotion which bonds noumenal world and phenomenal world. It is the mechanism of Moral motivation, and is related to humility、joy、respect and love. The importance of measuring success and failure Kant’s moral philosophy through Kant’s respect thoughts is that it liberates human’s moral freedom from natural necessity. Kant attributed practical moral to rationality world, thus free will get rid of natural necessity, and subject practice gained morality. Thereby, morality is purified. However, the defect of Kant’s theory is that it fails to deal relation of rationality and sensibility, resulting in that achievement of ultimate good can only rely on belief.Because of Kant’s dichotomy, rationality and sensibility fail to combine very well. Consequently, to reach ultimate good can only rely on respect of moral law, and moral stays in belief. The significance of Kant’s respect thoughts for contemporary society and present era is that it make people move towards emotional survival on the basis of moral fear and march towards the kingdom of truth、good and beauty in the balance of rationality and sensibility.