subordinatetothatpre-eminentlycertainandirrefragableintuition-whichstandsasthefirstprincipleofUtilitarianism;then,ofcourse,itwillbetheUtilitarianCodetowhichweshallbelievetheDivineSanctionstobeattached。
Or,again,wemayarguethus。If——asalltheologiansagree——wearetoconceiveGodasactingforsomeend,wemustconceivethatendtobeUniversalGood,and,ifUtilitariansareright,UniversalHappiness:andwecannotsupposethatinaworldmorallygoverneditcanbeprudentforanymantoactinconsciousoppositiontowhatwebelievetobetheDivineDesign。HenceifinanycaseaftercalculatingtheconsequencesoftwoalternativesofconductwechoosethatwhichseemslikelytobelessconducivetoHappinessgenerally,weshallbeactinginamannerforwhichwecannotbutexpecttosuffer。
Tothisithasbeenobjected,thatobservationoftheactualworldshowsusthatthehappinessofsentientbeingsissoimperfectlyattainedinit,andwithsolargeanintermixtureofpainandmisery,thatwecannotreallyconceiveUniversalHappinesstobeGod’send,unlessweadmitthatHeisnotOmnipotent。AndnodoubttheassertionthatGodisomnipotentwillrequiretobeunderstoodwithsomelimitation;butperhapswithnogreaterlimitationthanhasalwaysbeenimplicitlyadmittedbythoughtfultheologians。FortheseseemalwaystohaveallowedthatsomethingsareimpossibletoGod:as,forexample,tochangethepast。AndperhapsifourknowledgeoftheUniversewerecomplete,wemightdiscernthequantumofhappinessultimatelyattainedinittobeasgreatascouldbeattainedwithouttheaccomplishmentofwhatweshouldthenseetobejustasinconceivableandabsurdaschangingthepast。This,however,isaviewwhichitbelongsrathertothetheologiantodevelop。IshouldratherurgethattheredoesnotseemtobeanyotheroftheordinaryinterpretationsofGoodaccordingtowhichitwouldappeartobemorecompletelyrealisedintheactualuniverse。Forthewonderfulperfectionsofworkthatweadmireinthephysicalworldareyeteverywheremingledwithimperfection,andsubjecttodestructionanddecay:andsimilarlyintheworldofhumanconductVirtueisatleastasmuchbalancedbyViceasHappinessisbymisery。Sothat,iftheethicalreasoningthatledustointerpretUltimateGoodasHappinessissound,thereseemsnoargumentfromNaturalTheologytosetagainstit。
If,then,wemayassumetheexistenceofsuchaBeing,asGod,bytheconsensusoftheologians,isconceivedtobe,itseemsthatUtilitariansmaylegitimatelyinfertheexistenceofDivinesanctionstothecodeofsocialdutyasconstructedonaUtilitarianbasis;andsuchsanctionswould,ofcourse,sufficetomakeitalwayseveryone’sinteresttopromoteuniversalhappinesstothebestofhisknowledge。Itis,however,desirable,beforeweconclude,toexaminecarefullythevalidityofthisassumption,insofarasitissupportedonethicalgroundsalone。Forbytheresultofsuchanexaminationwillbedetermined,aswenowsee,theveryimportantquestionwhetherethicalsciencecanbeconstructedonanindependentbasis;orwhetheritisforcedtoborrowafundamentalandindispensablepremissfromTheologyorsomesimilarsource。Inorderfairlytoperformthisexamination,letusreflectupontheclearestandmostcertainofourmoralintuitions。IfindthatIundoubtedlyseemtoperceive,asclearlyandcertainlyasIseeanyaxiominArithmeticorGeometry,thatitis`right’and`reasonable’formetotreatothersasIshouldthinkthatImyselfoughttobetreatedundersimilarconditions,andtodowhatIbelievetobeultimatelyconducivetouniversalGoodorHappiness。ButIcannotfindinseparablyconnectedwiththisconviction,andsimilarlyattainablebymerereflectiveintuition,anycognitionthatthereactuallyisaSupremeBeingwhowilladequatelyrewardmeforobeyingtheserulesofduty,orpunishmeforviolatingthem。
Or,——omittingthestrictlytheologicalelementoftheproposition,——I
maysaythatIdonotfindinmymoralconsciousnessanyintuition,claimingtobeclearandcertain,thattheperformanceofdutywillbeadequatelyrewardedanditsviolationpunished。[3]Ifeelindeedadesire,apparentlyinseparablefromthemoralsentiments,thatthisresultmayberealisednotonlyinmyowncasebutuniversally;butthemereexistenceofthedesirewouldnotgofartoestablishtheprobabilityofitsfulfilment,consideringthelargeproportionofhumandesiresthatexperienceshowstobedoomedtodisappointment。Ialsojudgethatinacertainsensethisresultoughttoberealised:inthisjudgment,however,Ioughtisnotusedinastrictlyethicalmeaning;itonlyexpressesthevitalneedthatourPracticalReasonfeelsofprovingorpostulatingthisconnexionofVirtueandself-interest,ifitistobemadeconsistentwithitself。
ForthenegationoftheconnexionmustforceustoadmitanultimateandfundamentalcontradictioninourapparentintuitionsofwhatisReasonableinconduct;andfromthisadmissionitwouldseemtofollowthattheapparentlyintuitiveoperationofthePracticalReason,manifestedinthesecontradictoryjudgments,isafterallillusory。
Idonotmeanthatifwegaveupthehopeofattainingapracticalsolutionofthisfundamentalcontradiction,throughanylegitimatelyobtainedconclusionorpostulateastothemoralorderoftheworld,itwouldbecomereasonableforustoabandonmoralityaltogether:butitwouldseemnecessarytoabandontheideaofrationalisingitcompletely。Weshoulddoubtlessstill,notonlyfromself-interest,butalsothroughsympathyandsentimentsprotectiveofsocialwellbeing,impartedbyeducationandsustainedbycommunicationwithothermen,feeladesireforthegeneralobservanceofrulesconducivetogeneralhappiness;andpracticalreasonwouldstillimpelusdecisivelytotheperformanceofdutyinthemoreordinarycasesinwhichwhatisrecognisedasdutyisinharmonywithself-interestproperlyunderstood。Butintherarercasesofarecognisedconflictbetweenself-interestandduty,practicalreason,beingdividedagainstitself,wouldceasetobeamotiveoneitherside;theconflictwouldhavetobedecidedbythecomparativepreponderanceofoneorotheroftwogroupsofnon-rationalimpulses。
Ifthenthereconciliationofdutyandself-interestistoberegardedasahypothesislogicallynecessarytoavoidafundamentalcontradictioninonechiefdepartmentofourthought,itremainstoaskhowfarthisnecessityconstitutesasufficientreasonforacceptingthishypothesis。This,however,isaprofoundlydifficultandcontrovertedquestion,thediscussionofwhichbelongsrathertoatreatiseonGeneralPhilosophythantoaworkontheMethodsofEthics:asitcouldnotbesatisfactorilyanswered,withoutageneralexaminationofthecriteriaoftrueandfalsebeliefs。Thosewhoholdthattheedificeofphysicalscienceisreallyconstructedofconclusionslogicallyinferredfromself-evidentpremises,mayreasonablydemandthatanypracticaljudgmentsclaimingphilosophiccertaintyshouldbebasedonanequallyfirmfoundation。Ifontheotherbandwefindthatinoursupposedknowledgeoftheworldofnaturepropositionsarecommonlytakentobeuniversallytrue,whichyetseemtorestonnoothergroundsthanthatwehaveastrongdispositiontoacceptthem,andthattheyareindispensabletothesystematiccoherenceofourbeliefs,——itwillbemoredifficulttorejectasimilarlysupportedassumptioninethics,withoutopeningthedoortouniversalscepticism。
[Reprinted,withsomeomissions,fromMIND,1888,Vol。XIII,No。51。]
Myaimistoshowthat,indifferentpartsofKant’sexpositionofhisdoctrine,twoessentiallydifferentconceptionsareexpressedbythesamewordfreedom;whileyetKantdoesnotappeartobeconsciousofanyvariationinthemeaningoftheterm。
[Intheonesense,Freedom=Rationality,sothatamanisfreeinproportionasheactsinaccordancewithReason。]
IdonotintheleastobjecttothisuseofthetermFreedom,onaccountofitsdeviationfromordinaryusage。Onthecontrary,Ithinkithasmuchsupportinmen’snaturalexpressionofordinarymoralexperienceindiscourse。
Intheconflictthatiscontinuallygoingoninallofus,betweennon-rationalimpulsesandwhatwerecogniseasdictatesofpracticalreason,weareinthehabitofidentifyingourselveswiththelatterratherthanwiththeformer:asWhewellsays,``wespeakofDesire,Love,Anger,asmasteringus,andofourselvesascontrollingthem’’——wecontinuallycallmen``slaves’’
ofappetiteorpassion,whereasnoonewasevercalledaslaveofreason。
If,therefore,thetermFreedombadnotalreadybeenappropriatedbymoraliststoanothermeaning——ifitweremerelyaquestionoftakingitfromordinarydiscourseandstampingitwithgreaterprecisionforpurposesofethicaldiscussion——Ishouldmakenoobjectiontothestatementthat``amanisafreeagentinproportionasheactsrationally’’。But,whatEnglishdefendersofman’sfreeagencyhavegenerallybeenconcernedtomaintain,isthat``manhasafreedomofchoicebetweengoodandevil’’,whichisrealisedormanifestedwhenhedeliberatelychooseseviljustasmuchaswhenhedeliberatelychoosesgood;anditisdearthatifwesaythatamanisafreeagentinproportionasbeactsrationally,wecannotalsosay,inthesamesenseoftheterm,thatitisbyhisfreechoicethatheactsirrationallywhenhedoessoact。ThenotionsofFreedommustbeadmittedtobefundamentallydifferentinthetwostatements:andthoughusagemightfairlyallowthewordFreedomtorepresenteithernotion,ifonlyoneorotheroftheabove-mentionedpropositionswereaffirmed,touseittorepresentboth,inaffirmingbothpropositions,isobviouslyinconvenient;anditimpliesaconfusionofthoughtsotouseit,withoutpointingoutthedifferenceofmeaning。
Ifthisbeadmitted,thenextthingistoshowthatKantdoesusetheterminthisdoubleway。
Inarguingthis,itwillbeconvenienttohavenamesforwhatweadmittobetwodistinctideas。Accordingly,thekindoffreedomwhichIfirstmentioned——whichamanissaidtomanifestmoreinproportionasheactsmoreundertheguidanceofreason——shallbereferredtoas`Good’or`RationalFreedom’,andthefreedomthatismanifestedinchoosingbetweengoodandevilshallbecalled`Neutral’or`MoralFreedom’。[1]
ButbeforeIproceedtothedifferentpassagesofKant’sexpositioninwhich`GoodFreedom’and`NeutralFreedom’respectivelyoccur,itseemsdesirabletodistinguishthislatterfromawidernotionwithwhichitmaypossiblybeconfounded,andwhichitwouldbeclearlywrongtoattributetoKant。Imeanthe``powerofactingwithoutamotive’’,whichReidandotherwriters,onwhatusedtobecalledtheLibertarianside,havethoughtitnecessarytoclaim。``Ifamancouldnotactwithoutamotive’’,saysReid,``hecouldhavenopower’’——thatis,inReid’smeaning,nofreeagency——``atall’’。ThisconceptionofFreedom——whichImayconvenientlydistinguishas`CapriciousFreedom’——is,asIsaid,certainlynotKantian:notonlydoesheexpresslyrepudiateit,butnowhere——sofarasIknow——doesheunconsciouslyintroduceit。Indeeditisincompatiblewithanyandeverypartofhisexplanationofhumanvolition:theoriginalityandinterestofhisdefenceofNeutralFreedom——thepowerofchoicebetweengoodandevil——liesinitscompleteavoidanceofCapriciousFreedomorthepowerofactingwithoutamotiveinanyparticularvolition。
[This]distinctionhelpsmetounderstandhow[itisthat]manyintelligentreadershavefailedtoseeinKant’sexpositionthetwoFreedoms-GoodorRationalFreedomandNeutralorMoralFreedom-whichIfindinKant。TheyhavetheirviewfixedonthedifferencebetweenRationalorMoralFreedom,whichKantmaintains,andtheFreedomofCaprice,whichheundoubtedlyrepudiates:andarethusledtooverlookwithhimthedistinctionbetweentheFreedomthatwerealiseormanifestinproportionaswedoright,andtheFreedomthatisrealisedormanifestedequallyinchoosingeitherrightorwrong。WhenwehaveonceputcompletelyoutofviewtheFreedomofCaprice,thepowerofActingwithoutamotive,oragainstthestrongestmotivewhenthecompetitionisamongmerelynaturalornon-rationaldesiresoraversions,-whenwehaveagreedtoexcludethis,andtoconcentrateattentiononthedifferencebetweenGoodFreedomandNeutralFreedom-IventuretothinkthatnoonecanavoidseeingeachmemberofthislatterantithesisinKant。Itwillbeeasilyunderstoodthat,ashedoesnothimselfdistinguishthetwoconceptions,itisnaturallyimpossibleforthemostcarefulreaderalwaystotellwhichistobeunderstood;buttherearemanypassageswherehisargumentunmistakablyrequirestheone,andmanyotherpassageswhereitunmistakablyrequirestheother。Speakingbroadly,Imaysaythat,whereverKanthastoconnectthenotionofFreedomwiththatofMoralResponsibilityormoralimputation,he,likeallothermoralistswhohavemaintainedFreeWillinthisconnexion,meanschiefly,butnotsolelyNeutralFreedom——Freedomexhibitedinchoosingwrongasmuchasinchoosingright。Indeed,insuchpassagesitiswiththeFreedomofthewrong-chooserthatheisprimarilyconcerned:sinceitisthewrong-chooserthatheespeciallywishestopreventfromshiftinghisresponsibilityontocausesbeyondhiscontrol。Ontheotherhand,whenwhathehastoproveisthepossibilityofdisinterestedobediencetoLawassuch,withouttheinterventionofsensibleimpulses,whenheseekstoexhibittheindependenceofReasonininfluencingchoice,theninmanythoughnotallhisstatementsheexplicitlyidentifiesFreedom。withthisindependenceofReason,andthusdearlyimpliesthepropositionthatamanisfreeinproportionasheactsrationally。
Asanexampleofthefirstkind,Iwilltakethepassagetowardsthecloseofchap。iii。ofthe``AnalyticofPracticalReason’’,[2]wherehetreats,initsbearingonMoralResponsibility,hispeculiarmetaphysicaldoctrineofadoublekindofcausationinhumanactions。AccordingtoKant,everysuchaction,regardedasaphenomenondeterminedintime,mustbethoughtasanecessaryresultofdeterminingcausesinantecedenttime——otherwiseitsexistencewouldbeinconceivable——butitmaybealsoregardedinrelationtotheagentconsideredasathing-in-himself,as。the``noü;menon’’ofwhichtheactionisaphenomenon:andtheconceptionofFreedommaybeappliedtotheagentsoconsideredinrelationtohisphenomena。Forsincehisexistenceasanoü;menonisnotsubjecttotime-conditions,nothinginthisnoü;menalexistencecomesundertheprincipleofdeterminationbyantecedentcauses:hence,asKantsays,``inthishisexistencenothingisantecedenttothedeterminationofhiswill,buteveryaction?eventhewholeseriesofhisexistenceasasensiblebeing,isintheconsciousnessofhissupersensibleexistencenothingbuttheresultofhiscausalityasanoü;menon’’。Thisisthewell-knownmetaphysicalsolutionofthedifficultyofreconcilingFreeWillwiththeUniversalityofphysicalcausation:
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