According to Kant, the philosophical areas of logic, physics, and ethics are all intertwined, meaning they do not function independently of each other in the natural world. We have learned that nature is purposive and that the laws of nature (i.e., physics) are necessarily universal. If we think of ethics and morality in the same way then that would mean morals and ethics are also universal. As always, the majority of us were skeptical of this idea because we like to think morals are culturally learned (i.e., they differ depending on one's own culture and beliefs). However, are cultures really so uniquely different that there can not be a universally shared concept of reason and morality?
Kant describes the relationship between reason and morality as being one in which something that is morally bad is such because a rational person would not commit the act. In other words, if one ought not to kill and does so, that person is both irrational and immoral. I don't think most people would disagree that killing is both irrational and immoral as a universal concept, but what about things that we describe as being unique to our culture as a whole; can we say that another culture is irrational or immoral when judged according to the ethical standards set by our culture? So far, it seem as though Kant would say that because ethics are governed by natural law, then all ethical things are necessarily universal. To some extent, I would agree with Kant. I think cultures can look different on the surface, act different in social contexts, and even come to different conclusion about things based on their individual cultural beliefs; however, what I do not believe to an absolute certainty is that we are all so different that we can not, or should not, reason in similar ways. If we take the example of physics, no rational being in any culture would reason that dropping an object would cause it to float upwards. If it is the case that the principle of ethics function similar to the principle so physics, then why can't the same be true of murder, or honesty?
-Andrea
Nicely written Andrea! I also thought about how culture plays a role in ethics. I believe that culture leads us to tackle situations differently but for the most part humans try and come to a conclusion that appears to be morally acceptable. We can see this within our own culture. Twenty years ago it was not as serious to spank a child in public when they were acting out. The goal was to prevent them from doing something wrong and show them that they cannot act badly. In today's culture however, spanking your child in public makes the public uncomfortable. People attribute it to abuse. Now guardians have to use other means to get the same results. They have to use their words in order to get their child to behave properly. I think that the fact that culture changes throughout the years attributes to how people act socially. Does this answer why ethics is not as universal as physics? I would have to say that people are not as rational as we wish to believe. Physics is more set in stone. Ethics has to be left to interpretation which humans in general are not particularly good at.
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