Kants’ ideas of duty and fulfilling good will all revolve around using instinct instead of reason to decided ones actions. The instinct, which he talks of, might be similar to what Hospers says about the human brain. According to him, we are controlled by our unconscious decisions. We always think that we are making the choice but in fact our conscious has no say in the matter. This might be similar to what Kant means by instinct, an underlying presence within us that tells us what to do if we listen. Hospers says, however, that our unconscious is determined for us by early childhood experience and perhaps, if this is true, Kants’ idea of being able to use instinct is determined by man. Thus the good will and universal law that he speaks of are in fact only those of ones unconscious and mankind in general. The big difference between the two comes when Hospers makes his point that because our unconscious is determined by outside forces we do not have a free will. Due to this, we are not responsible for our actions and have no moral obligations. This is a huge difference and is a similar idea to the Taoists. They also believe that we have no moral obligations and should use non-action.
Hobbes would believe that since all men are created equal it leads to competition between them. In this view it would be hard for everyone to achieve true happiness which all four of the first philosophers talk about. This is because, according to Hobbes, not everyone can have the same thing and it leads to having enemies. We only treat others with respect and would help them if it will have some advantage to our own lives. We are a self-conscious being who does what is in their best interest. We do not feel any obligations or duty to anything in the view given by Hobbes and if we did it would only be with self-interest in mind.
The view that I like the most is the one by Kant. Although it is difficult to understand at first and takes time in interpreting it is very logical. The only problem was what the universal laws were. He says he does not know but that the best way to decide if ones action is dutiful is to ask ones self if their maxim could be a universal law. If it could not then it is not a good maxim. I think that his ideas of duty to achieve happiness and his explanation on the difficulty to obtain it were very good. The question of doing what seem to be good deeds out of inclinations and self-interest is also answered very well. One might have questioned that part of his philosophy if he had not used so many examples to justify his position. Although this view is hard to grasp at first and might also be hard to put into practice it is the one which I myself might live by. This is because I feel the Taoists lack of the need to help others to fulfill happiness was grave mistake. I do not believe one can find true happiness without helping others because a vast majority of people have morals to help those in need when they can. The reason it might be hard to put into practice is because it would be hard, at least at first, to do things without an inclination of some sort undermining the maxim. Using only instinct would be hard because humans are taught to use their reason for intentions and this is the gravest mistake of all according to Kant. I believe that with enough time though one could easily learn to use his teachings and learn to live a more fulfilling life in search of that elusive happiness.
Presbey M., Gail, and Karsten J. Struhl, and Richard E. Olsen, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross-Cultural Reader, United States of America: McGraw-Hill, 2000. (Bhagavad-Gita. Right Action. Pg. 419-427)
Presbey Gail M., and Karsten J. Struhl, and Richard E. Olsen, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross-Cultural Reader, United States of America: McGraw-Hill, 2000. (Immanuel Kant. Moral Duty. Pg. 427-432)
Presbey Gail M., and Karsten J. Struhl, and Richard E. Olsen, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross-Cultural Reader, United States of America: McGraw-Hill, 2000. (Chuang Tzo. Lost in Tao. Pg. 530-536)
Presbey Gail M., and Karsten J. Struhl, and Richard E. Olsen, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross-Cultural Reader, United States of America: McGraw-Hill, 2000. (Raymond M. Smullyan. Whichever the Way. Pg. 536-539)
Presbey Gail M., and Karsten J. Struhl, and Richard E. Olsen, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross-Cultural Reader, United States of America: McGraw-Hill, 2000. (Thomas Hobbes. Human Nature as Competitive. Pg. 217-222)
Presbey Gail M., and Karsten J. Struhl, and Richard E. Olsen, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross-Cultural Reader, United States of America: McGraw-Hill, 2000. (John Hospers. Free Will and Psychoanalysis. Pg. 394-402)
Presbey Gail M., and Karsten J. Struhl, and Richard E. Olsen, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross-Cultural Reader, United States of America: McGraw-Hill, 2000. (Plato. Phaedo. Pg.345-352)