The Development of Character in Kantian Moral Theory

7/29/2019 The Development of Character in Kantian Moral Theory

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T h e D e v e l o p m e n t o f C h aracterin Kantian Moral Theory

JEAN P. RUMSEY

1. INTRODUCTIONIN HER I985 PAPER, "The Practice o f Moral Jud gment, " Barbara Hermancarefully analyzes Kant's account of tha t process. On the basis of her analysisHerman postulates what she calls "Rules of Moral Salience" as an essentialpart of that process. In the absence of sufficient textual evidence to warrantpostulation of such rules, she claims that they, or something like them, areneeded to make a Kantian account of moral ju dg ment work. Her project,then, is not to provide a faithful exegesis of Kant's views, but to provide a"normative recons truction" of Kantian ethics, in orde r to present "a plausiblemoral theory that is clearly and distinctly Kantian. "~ This paper, similarlyconstrained, is an effo rt to arrive at a plausible account of the development ofcharac ter which is clearly Kantian, but which has not been fully articulated inKant's own work.

My project here is to examine carefully the Kantian view of the process ofcharacter development, in relation to both intelligible character (the rationalcapacity which is its fou nda tion and guide) and empirical character (characteras it develops or fails to develop in the lives of particular hu man beings). Whilethere is considerable textual material on each dimension of character, Kantwrote little about the relationship between the two. Perhaps he thought thattheir relationship was simple and clear, as hc implies in the Preface to thesecond edition of Religion W ithin the Limits o f Reason Alone, where he wrote thatthe terms virtus phaenomenon and virtus noumenon were only used because theywere clearer to philosophers. The matter itself, he wrote, "is contained,

I s h o u l d l ik e t o t h a n k P r o f e s s o r s C l a u d i a C a r d a n d P a t r ic k R i le y o f t h e U n i v e r s i ty o f W i s c o n -s in a n d a r e f e r e e f r o m t h is o u r n a l f o r h e l p f u l c o m m e n t s o n e a r l i er d r a f ts o f t h is p a p e r .

B a r b a r a H e r m a n , " T h e P r ac ti ce o f M o r a l J u d g m e n t , " Journa l o f Ph ilosophy , vo l . 82 , no . 8( A u g u s t 1 9 8 5 ): 4 1 4 - 3 6 .

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248 J O U R N A L O F T H E H I S T O R Y O F P H I L O S O P H Y 27:~ A P R I L ~989though in other words, in the most popular children's instruction and ser-mons, and is easily understood."*However, the relationship between the rational capacity for developmentof good character and its actualization is not that simple. In particular, whenconsidered from the former perspective, claims about the latter may seemincompatible with basic premises of Kant's theory. Thus Kant holds that everyhuman being, as rational, can recognize the moral law, and this capacity bothobligates and enables him to develop a will in which the moral incentive issovereign. However, when Kant t urned his attention toward the actual world,away from the rational Kingdom of Ends, he found many obstacles to thatdevelopment, not only in human inclinations but in human society. Particu-larly in A n t h r o po l o g y f r o m a P r a g m a t i c P o i n t o f V i ew , but also in his more nar-rowly political writings, Kant seems to be saying that for certain persons, giventheir backgrounds, occupations, or social roles, development of good moralcharacter is difficult, if not impossible. If this is true, what, then, becomes ofmoral causality?

Because the development of character seems to provide a natural bridgebetween the two dimensions, I will examine this process with care. My goal isto provide a normative reconstruction of Kant's theory of character which willshow crucial interrelationships between intelligible and empirical character,interre lationships which Kant himsel f did not spell out with care.

2 . T H E P R O B L E MIn the G r o u n d w o r k o f t he M e t a ph y s ic o f M o r a l s Kant set forth the rational founda-tions of the development of moral character; in the D o c t r i n e o f V i r t u e he articu-lated a theory of virtues which a moral agent should develop in order toachieve the two obligatory human ends, one's own perfection and the happi-ness of others; and in the R e l i g i o n he further defined good character andforms of evil character.

The foundation of good character is the moral causality of the rationalagent. If the agent recognizes the moral law, and commits himself firmly to actfrom respect for the moral law, he has established a sound basis for develop-ing good character. From time to time he may be mistaken in describing hismaxim (for instance, self-interest rather than beneficence may be the basis forhis assistance to an ailing, wealthy spinster aunt) but if he conscientiouslysubmits all maxims which might conflict with the moral law to its review, hiswill is fundamentally good. However, developing the several virtues comes

" Ka nts W erke, Akademie-Textausgabe[hereafterAk] (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 1968 , 6: 14;Religion W ithin the Limits of Reason Alone, trans. Theodore M. Greene and Hoyt H. Hudson (NewYork: Harper and Row, 196o), 13.


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DEVELOPMENT OF CHARACTER e49

s lo w l y, t h r o u g h c a r e f u l e x e r c i s e o f c h o i c e i n m o t i v a t io n a n d a c ti o n , a n d ise a s i e r o r m o r e d i f f i c u l t d e p e n d i n g u p o n t h e a g e n t ' s o w n t e m p e r a m e n t a n de x p e r i e n c e . A n a t u r a l l y g e n e r o u s p e r s o n m a y fi n d it e a s y t o d e v e l o p t h e v i rt u eo f b e n e f ic e n c e , w h i le a n a t u r a ll y u n s y m p a t h e t i c p e r s o n m a y h a v e t r o u b l ed e v e l o p i n g t h i s v i r t u e , t h o u g h f i n d i n g i t e a s y t o d e v e l o p s e l f - m a s t e r y . S i m i -l ar ly , o n e w h o h a s n o p e r s o n a l e x p e r i e n c e o f i ll ne s s is e n j o i n e d b y K a n t t o v is itt h e s i ck , i n o r d e r t o d e v e l o p s y m p a t h e t i c f e e l i n g s w h i c h w ill, in t u r n , f a c il it a ted e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e a s s o c ia t e d v ir tu e .

P o s s e s s i o n o f t h e s e v e r a l v ir t u e s , h o w e v e r , is n o t s u f f i c ie n t to i n s u r e t h a tt h e a g e n t h a s d e v e l o p e d g o o d c h a r a c t e r , f o r t h e ir p o s s e s s io n c o u l d b e a na r ti fa c t o f t e m p e r a m e n t , u p b r i n g i n g , o r e x p e r i e n c e . T h e v i r tu e o f c o n sc ie n -t i o u s n e s s , t h o u g h p i v o t a l i n K a n t ' s v i e w , is h o l l o w i n a s e l f - d e c e p t i v e a g e n t , s oK a n t h o l d s t h a t t h e o n l y p r o o f t h a t t h e a g e n t h a s d e v e l o p e d g o o d c h a r a c t e rl ie s i n h is u n f a i l i n g t r u t h f u l n e s s , t o h i m s e l f a s w e l l a s t o o th e r s .3 H o w e v e r , inth e R e l i g i o n K a n t is m o r e c a u t i o u s ; t h e a g e n t c a n n o t k n o w " t h e s u b j ec t iv e f ir s tg r o u n d o f h is m a x i m s , " y e t m u s t b e a b l e " to h o p e t h r o u g h h i s o w n e f f o r t s t or e a c h t h e r o a d w h i c h l e a d s t h i th e r , a n d w h i c h is p o i n t e d o u t to h i m b y af u n d a m e n t a l l y i m p r o v e d d i sp o s it io n , b e c a u s e h e o u g h t t o b e a g o o d m a n . '4T h e K a n t i a n a s s u m p t i o n h e r e , a g a i n , i s t h a t " o u g h t " i m p l i e s " c a n , " t h a t it ism o r a l ly w i th i n t h e p o w e r o f an y h u m a n b e i n g t o d e v e l o p c h a ra c t er .

W h a t a r e w e t o m a k e o f th o s e p a s s a g e s in K a n t ' s w r i ti n g s o n e m p i r ic a lc h a r a c t e r w h i c h s e e m t o c a l l t h i s f u n d a m e n t a l a s s u m p t i o n i n t o q u e s t i o n ? A tt im e s K a n t s e e m s t o b e p r o v i d i n g c o u n t e r e x a m p l e s f o r his o w n t h e o r y . H o w -e v e r , I b e l i e v e th a t a c a r e f u l e x a m i n a t i o n o f t h e s e e x a m p l e s w i ll r e v e a l s ig n i fi -c a n t r e l a t i o n s h i p s b e t w e e n m o r a l i t y a n d p o l i t i c s i n K a n t ' s o v e r a l l t h e o r y . I np a r t ic u l a r , t h is e x a m i n a t i o n s h o u l d p r o v i d e i n s i g h t i n to t h e k i n d s o f p o l it ic a ls t r u c t u r e s a n d c u l t u r a l v a l u e s w h i c h a r e c o n d u c i v e t o t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o fc h a r a c t e r , o n K a n t ' s a c c o u n t , a n d i n t o t h o s e w h i c h t h w a r t i ts d e v e l o p m e n t .

T h e a p p a r e n t c o n t r a d i c t i o n b e t w e e n K a n t ' s a c c o u n t o f i n te ll ig i bl e a n de m p i r i c a l c h a r a c t e r w h i c h I s h a l l e x a m i n e h a s i t s r o o t s i n t h e t a c i t a s s u m p t i o n( r a re l y a n e x p l i c it cl a im ) t h a t e v e n t h o u g h s o m e h u m a n b e i n g s, o r c la s se s o fh u m a n b e i n g s , a r e i n f u l l p o s s e s s i o n o f t h e f a c u l ty o f r e a s o n , t h e y d o n o tt y p ic a ll y d e v e l o p g o o d m o r a l c h a r a c t e r . A l t h o u g h i n K a n t ' s b a s ic m o r a l t h e o r yh e s e e m s to h o l d t h a t t h e p o s s e s s i o n o f r e a s o n is b o t h a n e c e s s a r y a n d s u ff i-c i e n t c o n d i t i o n f o r t h e w o r t h b o t h o f m o r a l a c t i o n s a n d a g e n t s , h e s e e m s toh o l d i n h i s e m p i r i c a l w r i ti n g s t h a t i t is n o t s u f f ic i e n t ; t h a t t h e r e a r e o t h e rp r e r e q u is i te s f o r t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f g o o d c h a r a c t e r, s u c h as i n d e p e n d e n c e

3 A k 89: 295; Anthropo logy f rom a Pragmat ic Po in t o f V iew , trans. MaryJ. Gregor (The Hague:M artinus Nijh off, 1974), x6o.4 Religion, 46 .


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2 5 0 J OURN AL OF THE HI STORY OF PHI LO SOPHY 2 7 :2 APRIL 1989(personal, political, and economic) and an adequat e early training. Kant explic-itly states that members of certain occupational groups are not able to do so.Thus neither the minister, the courtier, nor the poet can develop character,for none o f them is his own mas ter (the minis ter serving two masters, God andman, the courtier a succession of masters, while the poet is slave to his ownwit).~ Further, what Kant considers a poor cultural environment can thwartmoral development; for instance, the inf ant brought up by gypsies "until thehabit o f evil conduct has become a necessity" is less responsible fo r his actionsand the vices they indicate than an agent who has had an upbringing whichenables him to tell right from wrong, and been free to choose his own actionsand motivations.6Although Kant nowhere stated in so many words that the female of thespecies is unable to develop moral character, I shall argue that he presentsthem in his empirical writings in just that light. In brief, my argument will bethat he portrays women as morally limited in three important ways: i) asguided by feelings, taste and pragmatic intelligence rather than by principlethrough the exercise of practical reason; 2) as necessarily dependent uponmen for economic goods, and und er their direction politically in the institu-tion of marriage; and 3) as beings whose purposes are not their own, but havebeen co-opted by nature in order to carry out her great purposes, the propaga-tion and civilization of the race. Because of these limitations, they are abletypically to aspire only to functional charac ter--goodness in their ro le-- ratherthan to moral character itself. Because Kant wrote extensively on this topic,and somewhat less about the impediments o ther social roles or circumstancespresent to character development, I shall focus on the moral status of women,as Kant interpr eted it in his time.

If the claim above is true, the problem for Kant's moral theory is evident.For women are members of the human species; they are rational beings. IfKant's theory applies to all members of this species, then they, too, should beable to develop a good will with its principled virtues. I f they are not, t hen theuniversality of his theory is vitiated, and his claims about the powers of mora lcausality are ren der ed suspect. Alternatively, if Kant is presenting two differ-ent theories of character, one intelligible and one empirical, then one mustquestion whethe r or not these two theories can be integrated within a Kantianframework. If, however, the claim is overstated, and it is possible for womento develop good character, then we stand to learn something about Kant'sview of character development, as we understand why those features ofwomen's situation stated above function as moral impediments.

5 A k 89: 295;A n t h r o p o l o g y , 16o.6 L e c t u r e s o n E t h i c s , trans. Louis Infield (New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1963), 62, 64.


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DEVELOPMENT OF CHARACTER 251My procedure will be as follows: first, I will outline the development of

character according to Kant, noting factors necessary or conducive to thatdevelopment. Second, I will sketch female nature and character as Kant hasdescribed it. Third, I will examine Kant's view that women's purposes are nottheir own, but nature's, and the consequences following therefrom. On thebasis of this analysis I shall address the problem of whether Kant's view ofwomen represents an inconsistency in Kant's complete moral theory.

In conclusion I shall make th ree claims: 1) While Kant's denial that wo mentypically develop moral character seems inconsistent with his fundamentalmoral theory as expressed in the Groundwork,this apparent inconsistency van-ishes when one takes a broader perspective which includes Kant's theory ofcharacter. When the foundational perspective (humans considered as mem-bers of the class of rational beings) is augmented with the perspective ofcharacter de velop ment (humans considered as possessing both rationality andanimality, and necessarily situated in a particular society, at a particular timein history) the difficulty of actualizing one's rationally-based capacity for devel-oping character becomes apparent. Suppo rt for this claim is fou nd in "What IsEnlightenment?" (1784), in which Kant urges his readers to have the courageto use their own reason, admitting that most persons in the world do not:"Th e guardians who have kindly taken upo n themselves the work of supervi-sion will see to it that by far the largest part of mankind (including the entirefair sex) should consider the step forward to maturity as highly dangerous."7

Kant elsewhere provides a special explanation for the immaturity ofwomen. Unlike their male counterparts, women are not even potentially incontrol o f their own lives, but serve as vehicles of nature's purposes: to propa-gate and civilize the race. Kant fur the r holds that hazards incurr ed in carryingout the primary purpose require t hat the female must exist under the lifelongguardianship of the male, to whom they are subject in marriage. Women'spurposes are thus co-opted by nature, and they are politically subject; it isdifficult, therefore , to see how they would be able to achieve the moral auton-omy which defines good character for Kant. To provide this special explana-tion is not to deny woman's fundamental moral capacity, but to explain whyshe is unable to develop it properly , because of her function.

2) There is, however, a serious inconsistency in Kant's position: it seems tome that he cannot simultaneously hold both that all human beings have acapacity for moral autonomy, for reflective choice of their own principles,motivations, purposes and actions; and that women's purposes are not theirown, but are or dain ed by nature. To scholars wishing further clarification on

7 A k 8: 36; "What Is Enlightenment?" in K a n t ' s P o l i ti c a l W r i t i n g s , ed. Hans Reiss (Cambridge:Cambridge University Press, 197o), 54.


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DEVELOPM ENT OF CHARACTER 253ing wi ll, is d i r ec t ed by t he Wille, or r a t i ona l w i l l . Th i s i s t he i n t e l l i g ib l e d imen-s i on o f c h a r a c t e r ; t h e i n w a r d m a x i m is c r u ci a l, f o r b y m e r e o b s e r v a t i o n , i t isi m p o s s i b l e t o d i s t i n g u i s h a n a c t i o n w h i c h h a s s p r u n g f r o m t h e a g e n t ' s c h a r -a c t er f r o m o n e w h i c h h a s b e e n p r o m p t e d b y s e lf -i nt er e st , m e r e h a b i tu a t io n , o ri n c li n a ti o n . H o w e v e r , r e a s o n is n o t t h e o n l y b as is fo r t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o fc h a r a c t e r . R e a s o n g i v e s a c c e s s t o t h e m o r a l l a w , w h i l e m o r a l d i s p o s i t i o n s w h i c ha r e a p a r t o f th e n o r m a l a g e n t ' s n a t u r e e n a b l e h i m t o f e e l i ts p u ll : m o r a lf e e li n g , c o n s c ie n c e , l o v e o f o n e ' s n e i g h b o r , a n d s e l f- e s te e m . K a n t h o l d s t h a tt h e se " lie at t h e ba s is o f m o r a l i t y . . , f o r t h e y a r e t h e m e a n s b y w h ic h h u m a na g e n t s c a n b e o b l i g a te d . " T h e i r s i g ni fi c an c e is p e r h a p s o b s c u r e d b y K a n t 'st e r m i n o l o g y ; t o s ay th e y a r e " s u b j e c ti v e c o n d i t i o n s o f o u r r e c e p t i v e n e s s t o th ec o n c e p t o f d u t y , n o t . . , o b j e c t i v e c o n d i t i o n s o f m o r a l i ty " in d i c a te s th a t t h e yp e r t a i n t o t h e m o r a l a g e n t r a t h e r t h a n t o t h e m o r a l l aw , a n d d o e s n o t d im i n i s ht h e i r n e c e s s i t y i n th a t r e s p e c t. 9 I t is p e r h a p s n o t t o o s t r o n g t o c al l t h e s e p r e r e q -u i si te s f o r c h a r a c t e r d e v e l o p m e n t . S h o u l d a p e r s o n b e l a c k in g i n t h e s e d is p o s i-t io n s , K a n t s a y s t h a t h e w o u l d h a v e n o d u t y t o a c q u i r e t h e m , b u t w o u l d r e m a i na s t r a n g e r t o m o r a l i ty , o r , i n o t h e r w o r d s , " m o r a l l y d e a d . ''1o

I n a d d i t i o n t o e n a b l i n g t h e a g e n t t o fe e l th e p u l l o f o b li g a t io n i n g e n e r a l ,t h e s e m o r a l d i s p o s i ti o n s a l s o f ac i li ta t e d e v e l o p m e n t o f p a r t i c u l a r v i r t u e s, s u c ha s t h a t o f b e n e f i c e n c e . K a n t h o l d s t h a t w e h a v e a " c o n d i t i o n e d " o r " i n d i re c t "d u t y t o c u l t i v a t e " t h e n a t u r a l s y m p a t h e t i c ( a e s t h e t i c ) f e e l i n g s i n u s a n d t o u s et h e m a s so m a n y m e a n s " t o p a r t ic i p a t e a c ti v el y i n t h e f a t e o f o th e r s , " f r o mm o r a l p r in c i p l e s a n d f r o m t h e f e e li n g a p p r o p r i a t e t o t h o s e p ri n c ip l e s ." M o r es t ro n g l y , K a n t s t a te s th a t t h e n a t u r a l d i s p o s i ti o n t o s y m p a t h y " is s til l on e o f t hei m p u l s e s w h i c h n a t u r e h a s i m p l a n t e d i n u s s o t h a t w e m a y d o w h a t t h et h o u g h t o f d u t y a l o n e w o u l d n o t a c c o m p l i s h ." "

T h u s f a r w e h a v e c o n s i d e r e d o n l y t w o k i n d s o f n a t u r a l h u m a n c a p ac it ie sw h i c h c o n t r ib u t e t o th e d e v e l o p m e n t o f m o r a l c h a r a c te r , r e a s o n a n d s en si bil -i ty . B u t s i n c e e v e r y a g e n t l iv e s i n a p a r t i c u l a r s o c ie t y , w i t h p a r t i c u l a r c u l t u r a lv a l u e s a n d , i n p a r t i c u l a r , s o c ia l r o l e s , th e q u e s t i o n a r is e s a s t o t h e i n f l u e n c e o ft h e s e s o c i a l f a c t o r s i n c h a r a c t e r d e v e l o p m e n t . A l t h o u g h t h i s i s a t o p i c o nw h i c h K a n t h a s w r i t te n e x t e n s iv e l y , it is n o t a q u e s t i o n w h i c h h e h a s a n s w e r e ds y s t e m a t ic a l l y , m u c h l e s s u n e q u i v o c a l l y . I t s i m p o r t a n c e w a r r a n t s i n q u i r y i n tot h e q u e s t io n , d e s p i t e t h e u n c e r t a i n t y o f a r r i v in g a t a n a d e q u a t e a n s w e r .

W e m a y b e g i n t h i s i n q u i r y w i t h K a n t ' s c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f p o l i t i c a l r e a l i t yi n " W h a t I s E n l i g h t e n m e n t ? " H e r e h e d e p i c t s a p a t e r n a l i s t i c w o r l d i n w h i c h

9 A k 12: 399; T he Doc t r i ne o f V i r t ue , t r an s . M a r y J . G r e g o r ( N e w Y o r k : H a r p e r a n d R o w ,1964), 59.1o A k 12 : 399 ; Doct r i ne o f V i r t ue , 6 o .

" A k 33 : 455 ; 35 : 457 ; Doct r i ne o f V i r t ue , 1 2 5 - 2 6 .


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DEVELOPMENT OF CHARACTER 255t r u t h f u l n e s s , a n d s o c i a b il i ty s h o u l d b e i nc u lc a te d .x 6 I d e a l ly , h e s h o u l d a c t f r o mm a x i m s " t h e r e a s o n a b l e n e s s o f w h i c h h e i s a b l e t o se e f o r h i m s e lf ," t h e p r in c i -p l e s b e h i n d t h e m a n d a te s .~ 7 M o s t i m p o r t a n t l y , h e s h o u l d l e a r n t h a t h e h a s ac a p a c i ty f o r c h o o s i n g w e l l o r p o o r l y , r ig h t l y o r w r o n g l y ; t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f th i sc a p a c i ty o f r e f le c t iv e c h o i c e i s t h e e v e r - p r e s e n t g o a l o f h i s l o n g t u te l a g e .

T h i s e a r l y t r a i n i n g i s p r e p a r a t o r y t o m o r a l e d u c a t i o n i t s e l f , a d d r e s s e d i nth e D o c t r i n e o f V i r tu e r a t h e r t h a n i n t h e E d u c a t i o n . K a n t h e r e p r i m a r i l y c o n c e n -t ra t e s o n v i r t u e i n i ts si n g le s e n s e ( t h e c o m m i t m e n t o f t h e w ill t o t h e g u i d a n c eo f p r a ct ic a l r e a s o n , r a t h e r t h a n b y o n e ' s o w n i n c li n a ti o n s o r b y o t h e r s ), f o r h eh o l d s t h i s t o b e n e c e s s a r i l y p r i o r t o t h e a c q u i s i t i o n o f p a r t i c u l a r v i r t u e s , e v e no n e s o p i v o ta l a s c o n s c i e n t i o u s n e s s ; t h a t c o m m i t m e n t i ts e l f n e c e s s it a te s t h ed e v e l o p m e n t o f t h a t p a r t i c u l a r v i r tu e . K a n t h o l d s t h a t w h il e a y o u n g p e r s o nm i g h t l e a r n t o b e h a v e g e n e r o u s l y , o r r e s p e c tf u ll y , f r o m a d m i r e d m o d e l s , th ea g e n t c a n l e a r n l i t tl e f r o m o t h e r s i n th i s f u n d a m e n t a l c h o i c e o f i n t e ll ig i b l ec h a r a c t e r . T h i s c h o i c e m u s t b e m a d e , a s K a n t p u t s i t , w i t h i n " t h e s u b j e c t i v ea u t o n o m y o f e a c h m a n ' s p r a c ti c a l r e a s o n " ; t h e s t a n d a r d h e r e is n o t o n e ' s o w ns o c ie ty , n o r t h e s a in t s a n d h e r o e s w i th i n it, b u t " t h e I d e a o f h u m a n i t y ( w h a tm a n o u g h t t o b e ) a n d s o w i t h t h e [ m o r a l] l a w . ''8 B e c a u s e o f th is , e x a m p l e s a r en o t u s e d , t h o u g h a c a te c h i s m i s d e s i g n e d t o p r e s e n t t h e m o r a l l aw in itsr e l a ti o n t o t h e a g e n t ' s h a p p i n e s s , d u t i e s , a n d i n cl in a ti o n s. T h e s h a m e f u l n e s sr a t h e r t h a n t h e h a r m f u l n e s s o f v ic e is e m p h a s i z e d , a s is t h e r i g h t n e s s r a t h e rt h a n t h e u t i li ty o f v i r tu e . A g a i n , q u e s t i o n s a r e d e s i g n e d t o g u i d e t h e s t u d e n t t oa n a w a r e n e s s o f his o w n a g e n c y a n d c h o ic e .

T h e c o o p e r a t i o n o f a ll t h e s e f a c t o r s c a n r e s u l t in g o o d c h a r a c t e r , i n it si n te ll ig i b le d i m e n s i o n o f c o m m i t m e n t t o t h e m o r a l l aw , a n d it s e m p i r i c a l o b -j e c ti f ic a t i o n t h r o u g h m a s t e r y o f t h e p a r t i c u l a r v i r t u e s t h e la w e n jo i n s. B o t hd i m e n s i o n s a r e e n c o m p a s s e d in K a n t' s d e fi n it io n o f c h a ra c t e r a s " th e p r o p e r t yo f w ill b y w h i c h [ t h e a g e n t ] b i n d s h i m s e l f to d e f i n i t e p r a c t ic a l p r i n c i p l e s t h a th e h a s p r e s c r i b e d t o h i m s e l f i r re v o c a b l y b y h is o w n re as on ."~ 9 A s w e h a v es e e n , K a n t h o l d s t h a t f o r g i n g o n e ' s c h a r a c t e r is a d i ff i c u l t p r o j e c t , e v e n i n t h eb e s t o f c ir c u m s t a n c e s . I t is a l i fe l o n g p r o c e s s , e n d i n g o n l y a t d e a t h , i ts b a s is isr a r e l y s e c u r e d b e f o r e t h e a g e o f t h i rt y . F i n al ly , e v e n t h e a g e n t h e r s e l f c a n n o tg a i n c o m p l e t e c e r t a i n t y t h a t s h e h a s e s t a b l is h e d g o o d c h a r a c t e r , b u t m u s t i n f e rh e r m o r a l p r o g r e s s f r o m h e r s a ti sf a ct io n i n th e c o n s is t en t p e r f o r m a n c e o f th ed u t i e s i t e n j o i n s , a n d h e r a c q u i s it io n o f th e d i s p o s i ti o n s i t r e c o m m e n d s .

,6 For a fuller discussion of con ventional elemen ts in mo ral udg me nt, see Herm an, "MoralJudgm ent," cited above.,7 Ak 9: 475 ; Education, trans, not cred ited (Ann Arbo r: Universityof Michigan Press, 1980 ,lo8.~8 Ak 5~: 480 ; Doctrine of Virtue, 153.~9 Ak 89: ~9~; Anthropology, 157.


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2 5 6 J O U R N A L O F T H E H I S T O R Y O F P H IL O S O P H Y 2 7 : 2 A P RI L 1 9 8 9T h e f o r e g o i n g a c c o u n t o f t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f e m p i r i ca l c h a r a c te r , in

w h i c h t h e a g e n t ' s p r a c t i c a l r e a s o n i s a u g m e n t e d b y n a t u r e , t h e p o li ti ca l o r d e r ,e d u c a t i o n a n d c i vi li z ed p ra c t ic e s , is K a n t ' s a c c o u n t o f h o w c h a r a c t e r s h o u l dd e v e l o p i n a r a ti o n a l b e in g . W e a r e n o w r e a d y t o e x a m i n e t h e q u e s t io n o f w h y ,i n K a n t ' s v ie w , th e f e m a l e o f t h i s r a ti o n a l s p e c ie s d o e s n o t , o r c a n n o t , d e v e l o pm o r a l c h a r a c t e r .

4 . T H E P R O B L E M O F W O M E N ' S C H A R A C T E RK a n t ' s p o r t r a y a l o f f e m a l e c h a r a c t e r i n t h e e a r l y O b s e r v a t i o n s o n t h e F e e l i n g o ft he B e a u t i f u l a n d t h e S u b l i m e w a s n o t p u r e l y a d e s c r i p t i o n o f f e m a l e " n a t u r e , "b u t w a s o f f e r e d a s a c r i t e r i o n f o r w h a t t h a t c h a r a c t e r s h o u l d b e . W h i l e h ei d e n t i f ie d f e m a l e q u a l it i es w i t h t h e b e a u t i f u l , a n d m a s c u l i n e w i t h t h e n o b l e , h es ta te s th a t h e d i d n o t m e a n t o a ss e r t t h a t w o m e n a r e e n t i r e l y l a c k in g in n o b l eq u a li ti e s, o r t h a t m e n a r e e n t i r e l y b e r e f t o f b e a u t i f u l o n e s. H e a s s e rt s r a t h e rt h a t " al l t h e o t h e r m e r i t s o f a w o m a n s h o u l d u n i t e s o le l y t o e n h a n c e t h ec h a r a c t e r o f t h e b e a u t i f u l , w h i c h is t h e p r o p e r r e f e r e n c e p o i n t ; a n d o n t h eo t h e r h a n d , a m o n g t h e m a s c u l i n e q u a li ti e s t h e s u b l i m e c l e ar l y s t a n d s o u t a st h e c r i t e r i o n o f h is k i n d . " P r a i s e a n d b l a m e m u s t b e a s s i g n e d i n t e r m s o f t h e s ec r it e r ia , as w e l l a s " a ll e d u c a t i o n a n d i n s t r u c t i o n . . , a n d a ll e f f o r t s to a d v a n c et h e m o r a l p e r f e c t io n o f t h e o n e o r th e o t h e r . . , w e m u s t r e m e m b e r t h a t th e ya r e n o t a li ke . '2~ T h e s e e a r l y r e m a r k s a r e n o t c i t e d a s e v i d e n c e f o r K a n t ' s f in a lv ie w , b u t a s c lu e s t o t h e p u z z l e o f w o m e n ' s c h a r a c t e r . L e t u s p u r s u e t h e m .

H o w , t h e n , i f a t a ll , a r e w o m e n d i f f e r e n t f r o m m e n , f r o m a m o r a l p o i n t o fv i e w ? K a n t ' s m o s t g e n e r a l s t a t e m e n t d e n i e s t h a t w o m e n a r e m o r a l b e i n g s :" N o t h i n g o f d u ty , n o t h i n g o f c o m p u l s i o n , n o t h i n g o f o b l i g a t i o n . . . I h a rd l yb e l i e v e t h a t t h e f a i r s e x is c a p a b l e o f p r i n c i p l e s . B u t i n t h e p l a c e o f it P r o v i-d e n c e h a s p u t i n t h e i r b r e a s t k i n d a n d b e n e v o l e n t s en s a ti o n s , a f i n e f e e l i n g f o rp r o p r i e t y , a n d a c o m p l a i s a n t s o u l. ''2~ T h i s d i f f e r e n t n a t u r e f it s t h e m f o r t h e i rs o c ie ta l f u n c t i o n ; d e c l a r i n g i n hi s w o r k o n e d u c a t i o n t h a t w o m e n " h a v e b u tl it tl e c h a r a c t e r , " h e p r e s c r i b e s t h a t t h e y a r e n o t t o b e e d u c a t e d f o r c h a r a c t e r ,b u t f o r t h e i r s p e c ia l r o l e i n s o c ie t y. "A w o m a n ' s e d u c a t i o n is n o t i n s t ru c t i o n ,b u t g u i d a n c e . S h e m u s t k n o w m e n r a t h e r t h a n b o o k s . H o n o r i s h e r g r e a t e s tv i r t u e , d o m e s t i c i t y h e r m e r i t . ''2~ T h e c o n t e x t m a k e s it p la i n t h a t " h o n o r " h e r em e a n s i r r e p r o a c h a b i l i t y i n m a t t e r s o f s e x, n o t m o r a l u p r i g h t n e s s , a s i t w o u l dw h e n a p p l i e d t o h e r b r o t h e r . K a n t is h e r e u p h o l d i n g t h e c ri t e ri o n f o r a g o o dw o m a n , n o t a g o o d p e r s o n .

2o Ak 2: 228; Observations on the Feeling of the Beautiful and the Sublime, t r ans . John T .Goldthw ait (Berkeley: University of California Press, 196o), 76- 77 .2~ Ak 2 : 229; Observations, 81.2, In The Educational Theory oflmm anuel Kant, trans. Edw ard F. Buckner (Philadelphia: J. B.Lippincott, 19o4), ~22.


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D E V E L O P M E N T O F C H A R A C T E R 957Similarly, in the A n t h r o p o l o g y Kant makes a point of spelling out women's

virtues, as contrasted with man's. She is patient, he tolerant; as in Aristotle,woman saves, while man acquires; she naturally possesses social grace andrefined feelings, which enable her to run a civilized household, while the man,through his understanding, is fitted to its rule.~3 These functional "virtues"are not principled, but are tendencies present in temperament or developedby imitation and role-playing. Thus Kant recommends that "children, espe-cially girls, must be got used to smiling in an easy, unconstrained way whenthey are still very young; for this illumination of the face gradually mouldsthem from within as well as establishes a disposition to joy, friendliness andsociability which is an early prep ara tion for this approximation to the virtue ofbenevolence."~4 The base coinage of what Kant calls the "social virtues" is thegoing currency fo r females.

However, Kant does proffer what we might call a "surrogate principle"which underlies the several virtues of women. This is the conventionalistprinciple that "what the world says is true, and what it does, good"; he pointsout that this "principle" is "hard to unite with character in the strict sense ofthe term." Nonetheless, he is at pains to claim that good women have existed,when one takes into consideration their "vocation" and the "relations in whichthey have been placed." Kant offers as an example John Milton's wife, evenwhen she urg ed her husband to take employme nt against his principles to easethe family's financial straits. Kant judges that this was proper, coming fromher, but tha t Milton was right in refusing. He quotes the latter as follows: "Ah,my d e a r . . , you and the rest of your sex want to travel in coaches: but I- -mu stbe an honorable man."*~

It is clear that Kant is giving this faint praise to women's functional char-acter, not to moral character. There is a sense in which we might respect agood woman, not for herself but for the useful and agreeable qualities shepossesses; the sense in which we would respect the talents of a good physician,a good horse-trainer, or a good bassoon player. This is respect for someonewho is good of his or he r kind, good at doing something, or fulfilling a certainsocial role. But this is hardly the respect for someone who is, throu gh her owncommi tment to the moral law, becoming herself morally good.

Kant's women, then, are proto-emotivists, guided by their feelings and amerely pragmatic intelligence, rather than practical reason. But how couldwomen's reason differ so from the reason that characterizes their species?Kant comes closest to addressing this question directly with respect to theo-

, 3 A k 89: 306, 31o;A n t h r o p o l o g y , 169, 17~.9 A k 13: 151; 14: a53; 79: ~65;A n t h r o p o l o g y , a51, 153, ~,65.95 A k 89: 3o8;A n t h r o p o l o g y , 1 7 1 .


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258 JOUR NAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHIL OSOP HY 27:2 APRIL 1989r e ti c r e a s o n . F o r h e a d m i t s t h a t a w o m a n m i g h t h a v e a c o n s i d e r ab l e p o w e r o ft h e o r e t i c r e a s o n , b u t c a u t i o n s h e r n o t t o d e v e l o p i t. K a n t w a r n s t h a t i f aw o m a n s h o u l d s u c c e e d i n s o m e f ie l d o f l e a r n in g , t h is " d e s t r o y s t h e m e r i ts t h a ta r e p r o p e r t o h e r s e x . . , a n d w ill w e a k e n t h e c h a r m s w i t h w h i c h sh e e x e rc i se sh e r g r e a t p o w e r o v e r t h e o t h e r s ex . ' '6

W i t h r e s p e c t t o p r a c ti c a l r e a s o n , K a n t s e e m s t o h o l d t h a t i t is ( o r o u g h t t ob e) s u b m e r g e d i n h e r f e m i n i n e n a t u r e . B e c a u s e o f t his , w o m a n ' s m o r a l d e v e l -o p m e n t i s h e l d t o b e d i f f e r e n t f r o m m a n ' s . Y o u n g m e n , a s w e h a v e s ee n , a reg u i d e d t o a n u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f th e m o r a l la w a n d t o a n a p p r e c i a t io n o f t h e i ro w n a g e n c y . Y o u n g w o m e n , i n c o n tr a s t , w ill b e e n c o u r a g e d t o b r o a d e n t h e i rm o r a l f e e l i n g , as K a n t s ay s, " o f c o u r s e n o t b y u n i v e r s a l r u l e s b u t b y s o m ej u d g m e n t u p o n t h e c o n d u c t t h e y s e e a b o u t t h e m " ; t h e y a r e to r e f i n e t h e i rs e n t i m e n t s i n t h e b e s t H u m e a n m a n n e r . K a n t s p ec if ie s t h a t th i s is " n e v e r ac o l d a n d s p e c u l a t iv e i n s t r u c t i o n b u t a l w a ys fe e l in g s , a n d t h o s e i n d e e d w h i c hr e m a i n a s c lo s e a s p o s s ib l e t o t h e s i t u a t i o n o f h e r se x." 27

K a n t d e s c r i b e s w o m e n ' s e f f e c t i v e r e a s o n i n t h e A n t h r o p o l o g y . T h e y a r e , h ec la im s , g u i d e d b y " t e c h n i c a ll y - p r a c ti c a l " r e a s o n ; t h a t is , r e a s o n t u r n e d t o p r a g -m a t ic e n d s . K a n t h o l d s t h a t n o t w i s d o m b u t p o w e r is w o m a n ' s t o u c h s t o n e ;t h e y b e n d t h e i r m e n t a l p o w e r s t o d o m i n a t e a n d m a n i p u l a t e o t h er s . K a n t n o t est h a t f e m i n i n e w a y s a r e " p r e c i se l y t h e r u d d e r s w o m e n u s e t o s t e er m e n a n d u s et h e m f o r t h e i r o w n p u r p o s e s . ''28 H e f u r t h e r s u gg e s ts t h a t b e c a u s e w o m e n h a v en o r ig h t s o r g o o d s , b u t a re d e p e n d e n t u p o n m e n f o r th e i r w e l f a re , th e i ri n t e ll i g e n c e h a s d e v e l o p e d i ts p r a g m a t i c c a st .

H o w e v e r , t h is v i ew is n o t c o n s i s t e n t w i t h h is a na l ys is o f h u m a n n a t u r e i nt h e R e l i g i o n . T h e r e h e c o n s t r u c ts a tr i p a r t i te d i vi si on o f h u m a n n a t u r e a sf o ll o w s : 1 ) t h e p r e d i s p o s i t i o n t o a n i m a l i t y i n m a n , t a k e n a s a l i v in g b e i n g ; ~ )t h e p r e d i s p o s i t i o n t o p e r s o n a l i t y i n m a n , t a k e n a s a li vi ng , r a t i o n a l b e in g ; a n d3 ) t h e p r e d i s p o s i t i o n t o p e r s o n a l i t y in m a n , t a k e n a s b o t h a r a t io n a l a n d a na c c o u n t a b l e b e i n g . K a n t h o l d s t h a t t h e s e c o n d p r e d i s p o s i t i o n is b a s e d o n" p r a c t ic a l r e a s o n , b u t a r e a s o n t h e r e b y s u b s e r v i e n t t o o t h e r i n c e n ti v e s " s u c h a sg a i n i n g p o w e r o v e r o t h e r s , i n p a r t i c u l a r , o v e r ri va ls . O n l y t h e t h i r d is b a s e d o n" r e a s o n w h i c h i s p r a c t i c a l o f i ts e l f, t h a t i s, r e a s o n w h i c h d i c t a t e s la w s u n c o n d i -t io n a l ly . " K a n t u n d e r l i n e s t h e f a c t t h a t a ll h u m a n s m u s t h a v e all th r e e d i sp o s i-t io n s b y s a y i n g t h a t t h e f ir s t t w o c a n b e u s e d i n a w a y w h i c h i s c o n t r a r y t o t h e i re n d s , b u t t h a t n o n e o f t h e t h r e e c a n b e e x ti rp a t ed . 2 0 O n K a n t ' s o w n a c c o u n t , i t

96 A k 2: 229; O b s e r v a t i o n s , 79.97 A k 2: 231; O b s e r v a t i o n s , 8 1 .98 A k 89: 3o4; A n t h r o p o l o g y , 167.99 A k 6: ~8; R e l i g i o n , ~ 2 - 2 3 .


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D E V E L O P M E N T O F C H A R A C T E R 2 5 9w o u l d s e e m t h a t w o m e n , a s h u m a n , m u s t h a v e all t h r e e p r e d i s p o s i ti o n s , in -c l u d i n g t h e r e a s o n t h a t is p r a c t i c a l o f it se l f.W h a t c a n w e c o n c l u d e , t h e n , a b o u t t h e c h a r a c t e r o f w o m e n , a s K a n t c o n -c e i v e d i t? F ir st , f o r K a n t , c h a r a c t e r i s a c q u i r e d b y u n d e r s t a n d i n g t h e m o r a lla w t h r o u g h r e a s o n a n d s t r u c t u r in g o n e ' s w ill a c c o rd i n g ly . W o m e n d o n o t d oth is : w o m e n ' s f ee l in g , h o w e v e r b r o a d e n e d , r e m a i n s f e e li n g. T h e y o p e r a t et h r o u g h s e n si b il it y , n o t r e a s o n . S i n ce a c t in g m o r a l l y is d e f i n e d b y K a n t a sa c t in g f r o m p r i n c ip l e , i t w o u l d s e e m t h a t w o m e n a r e s t r a n g e r s t o m o r a l i ty .W h i le K a n t d o e s h o l d t h a t t h e y a r e b y n a t u r e b e n e f i c e n t , s y m p a t h e t ic , a n ds o c i ab l e , i t s h o u l d b e c l e a r b y n o w t h a t f o r t h e p o s t - c ri ti c a l K a n t , h a v i n g a g o o dn a t u r e o r t e m p e r a m e n t i m p li e s n o t h i n g a b o u t o n e 's m o r a l c h a r ac t e r. B u t ifw o m e n a r e m e m b e r s o f t h e h u m a n s p e ci e s, w h o s e fi rs t c h a r a c te r i st ic i s itsp o w e r , a s r a ti o n a l , t o a c q u i r e c h a r a c t e r , t h e n h o w c o u l d t h e y b e W i th o u t t h ec a p a c i t y t o d o s o , o r w i t h o u t t h e p o s s i b il it y o f i ts a c tu a l i z a t io n ?

S u s a n M o i le r O k i n h a s a r g u e d t h a t K a n t m u s t h o l d t h a t w o m e n a r e a b l e t oa c q u i r e m o r a l c h a r a c t e r , b e c a u s e o f h is s tr e ss o n " t h e u n i v e r s a l a p p l ic a b i li ty o fh i s m o r a l a n d p o l i t i c a l p h i l o s o p h y , " a n d b e c a u s e h e a r g u e s s t r o n g l y t h a t "inm o r a l s , n o g a p i s t o b e t o l e r a t e d b e t w e e n t h e o r y a n d p r a c ti c e ." F u r t h e r , s h ep o i n t s o u t t h a t K a n t c l e a r ly s ta t e s th a t h is s y s te m h o l d s " n o t m e r e l y f o r m e n ,b u t f o r a ll r a t io n a l b e i n g s a s s u c h "; n o t i n g t h a t t h e u s e o f " m e n " i n t hi s c o n t e x tis su re ly gener i c. 3o

H o w e v e r , w e m u s t d i s t i n g u i s h b e t w e e n t h e c a p a c i t y f o r d e v e l o p m e n t o fm o r a l c h a r a c t e r a n d t h a t d e v e l o p m e n t i ts el f. I f i t is t r u e t h a t t h e w o m e n o fK a n t ' s t im e d i d n o t d e v e l o p c h a r a c t e r , i t d o e s n o t f o l lo w th a t t h e y l a c k t h ec a p a c it y . O n e m u s t l o o k in v a in t h r o u g h t h e K a n t i a n c o r p u s f o r a d e n i a l t h a tw o m e n l a ck s u c h a c a p a c it y . T o p o s i t t h is d e f ic i e n c y w o u l d t h r e a t e n t h e u n i v e r -s a li ty o f K a n t ' s s y s t e m .

L e t u s t h e r e f o r e e x a m i n e t h e h y p o t h e s i s th a t, a l t h o u g h w o m e n p o s s e ss t hi sc a p a c it y , th e y d o n o t a c t u a l iz e i t b e c a u s e f e a t u r e s o f th e i r p a r t i c u l a r s i t u a t i o n - -f e a t u r e s w h i c h w o u l d b e r e g a r d e d a s s e r i o u s o b s t a c le s f o r a n y p e r s o n , m a l e o rf e m a l e - - M e t e r o r b l o c k its d e v e l o p m e n t . T h e s u r f a c e in c o n s is te n c y m a y p o i n tt o a m o r e b a s i c t r u th : i n o r d e r t h a t a n y h u m a n m a y s h a p e h i s o w n c h a r a c t e r t ot h e d e m a n d s o f p r a c ti c a l r e a s o n , c e r t a in b r o a d s o ci al a n d p o li ti ca l c o n d i t i o n sm u s t o b t a i n . W e h a v e n o t e d t h a t K a n t h e l d t h a t t h e c le r g y , c o u r t i e rs , a n d p o e t sc a n n o t d e v e l o p m o r a l c h a r a c t e r b e c a u s e , i n d i f f e r e n t w a y s , t h e y a r e n o t t h e i ro w n m a s t e r s ; j u s t s o , i n K a n t ' s s o c ie t y , t h e w o m a n w a s u n d e r t h e t u t e la g e o f h e rh u s b a n d f o r th e d u r a t i o n o f h e r a d u l t lif e.

S u r e ly o n e o f t h e m o s t s e r io u s o b s ta c le s w h i c h t h e e m b o d i e d , e n c u l t u r e dso S u s a n M o i l er O k e n , " W o m e n a n d t h e M a k i n g o f t h e S e n t i m e n t a l F a m i l y, " Ph i l o s o p h y a n dPu b l i c A f f a i r s , v o l . I a , n o . I ( 1 9 8 ~ ) : 7 8 .


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260 J OURN AL OF THE HI STORY OF PHI LO SOPHY 2 7 :2 APRI L ~989a d u l t m e e t s in r e g a r d t o th e f o r g i n g o f h is o r h e r m o r a l i n t e g r it y is t h ec o n t i n u e d d o m i n a t i o n b y o t h e r p e r s o n s . T h e c le rg y , c o u r ti e rs , a n d e v e n p o e t sc o u l d c h a n g e t h e i r o c c u p a t i o n s , b u t w o m e n c o u l d n o t , i n K a n t ' s t i m e , r e -n o u n c e t h e r o l e a s s i g n e d t o t h e m o n t h e b a s is o f th e i r s ex . T h e s a li e n t f e a t u r eo f t h a t r o l e , o n K a n t ' s v ie w , is i ts d e p e n d e n c y . I n t h e n e x t s e c t i o n w e s h a lle x a m i n e K a n t ' s t e le o l o g ic a l e x p l a n a t i o n o f th e i r a n o m a l o u s p o s i ti o n .

5" NATU RE' S PUR POSES AND WOMEN'S TASKSK a n t' s p r i m a r y r e a s o n f o r h o l d i n g t h a t w o m e n a r e m o r a l ly i m m a t u r e is t h a tt h e ir o w n p u r p o s e s a r e c o - o p t e d b y n a tu r e 's . U n l ik e m e n , w h o ( o t h e r th i n g sb e i n g e q u a l ) a r e f r e e t o f o r g e t h e i r w ills in t o t h a t p u r i t y o f p u r p o s e w h i c hc o n s ti tu t e s c h a ra c t e r, w o m e n m u s t s e rv e n a t u re ' s p u r p o s e s . T o s u c c e e d inc o m p r e h e n d i n g t h e f e m a l e s e x , K a n t s ay s, " w e m u s t n o t u s e a s o u r p r in c i p lew h a t w e m a k e o u r e n d , b u t o n l y w h a t t h e e n d o f n a tu r e w a s i n d e v i s i n g t h ef e m a l e s ex ."3 ~ T h i s e n d is t w o - f o l d : t h e c o n t i n u a t i o n o f t h e s p e c i e s , a n d i tsp r o g r e s s i v e c i v i l i z a t i o n , o r , i n K a n t ' s p h r a s e , " t h e c u l t i v a t i o n a n d r e f i n e m e n to f s o c i e t y ."

K a n t h o l d s t h a t n a t u r e h a s b e s t o w e d o n t h e f e m a l e c e r t ai n q u a l it ie s w h i c he n a b l e h e r t o p e r f o r m t h o s e t a s k s w e l l . T o e q u i p h e r f o r t h e s e c o n d t a s k , s h eh a s b e e n g i v e n s p e c ia l p o w e r s , s u c h a s " m o d e s t y a n d e l o q u e n c e i n s p e e c h a n de x p r e s s i o n . I t m a d e h e r p r e c o c i o u s l y s h r e w d in c l a im i n g g e n t l e a n d c o u r t e o u st r e a t m e n t b y t h e m a l e , s o t h a t h e f i n d s h i m s e l f i m p e r c e p t i b l y f e t t e r e d b y ac h i l d t h r o u g h h i s o w n g e n e r o s i t y a n d l e d b y it , i f n o t t o m o r a l i t y i ts e lf , a t le a s tt o it s c l o th i n g , t h e c u l t iv a t e d p r o p r i e t y t h a t is t h e p r e p a r a t o r y t r a in i n g f o rm o r a l i t y a n d i ts r e c o m m e n d a t i o n . " 3 ' B y h e r u s e o f th e s e p o w e r s , s h e is t h ep r i m a r y m e a n s b y w h i c h c iv i li ze d v a l u e s a r e t r a n s m i t t e d t h r o u g h g e n e r a t i o n s .

H o w e v e r , t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c w h i c h n a t u r e h a s g i v e n t h e f e m a l e t o a i d i np e r f o r m i n g t h e f i rs t ta s k , t h e p r o p a g a t i o n o f t h e s p ec i es , is n o t a p o w e r b u t ali ab il it y. N a t u r e i ts e l f f e a r e d f o r its f u t u r e , a n d t h e r e f o r e i m p l a n t e d i n w o m a nf e a r a n d t im i d i t y in t h e f a c e o f p h y si c a l d a n g e r s , i n c l u d i n g t h o s e o f p r e g n a n c ya n d c h i l d h o o d . F r o m t h is t ra i t f lo w s a s i g ni fi c an t c o n s e q u e n c e : " T h r o u g h t h isw e a k n e s s w o m a n r i g h t f u l ly d e m a n d s t h a t m a n b e h e r p r o te c to r ." 3 a S h e is t h u sn o t h e r o w n p e r s o n , b u t b e l o n g s t o h e r p r o t e c t o r , a n d , i n a d i f f e r e n t w a y , t ot h e p r o g e n y w i t h w h o m s h e h a s b e e n e n t r u s t e d b y n a t u r e . T h i s f e a r a n dc o n c o m i ta n t n e e d m i g h t p r e v e n t h e r f r o m b e i n g ab l e t o f o r g e h e r o w n i n te g -r i t y , a n d e x p l a i n h e r m o r a l s h o r t c o m i n g s . W e r e c a l l t h a t i n h i s e s s a y , " W h a t I sE n l i g h t e n m e n t ? " K a n t c a s t i g a t e d t h e b u l k o f h u m a n i t y , i n c l u d i n g a ll w o m e n ,

s~ Ak 7: 306; Anthropology, 169.3, Ak 89: 306; Anthropology, 169.s3 Ak 89: 3o6 ; Anthropology, 169.


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D E V E L O P M E N T O F C H A R A C T E R 2 6 1f o r " s e l f - i n c u r r e d " i m m a t u r i t y d u e t o " l a z i n e s s a n d c o w a r d i c e . " I f , h o w e v e r ,n a t u r e , f o r i ts o w n p u r p o s e s , h a s c a u s e d w o m e n t o b e t h u s d e p e n d e n t , t h e n itw o u l d s e e m t h a t t h e y a r e n o t c u l p a b l e f o r t h e i r i m m a tu r it y. 34

T o t h e t e le o lo g ic a l a r g u m e n t s f o r th e s u b o r d i n a t io n o f w o m e n K a n t a d d s apo l i t i ca l one : " I f a u n i o n is t o b e h a r m o n i o u s a n d i n d i s s o l u b l e . . , o n e p a r t ym u s t b e t h e superior o f t h e o t h e r i n s o m e w a y , i n o r d e r t o b e a b l e t o ru l e a n dg o v e r n h im . F o r i f t w o p e o p l e w h o c a n n o t d i s p e n s e w i th e a c h o t h e r m a k eequal c la i m s , s e l f- lo v e p r o d u c e s n o t h i n g b u t w r a n g l i n g ." I n a h o u s e h o l d ," t h e r e c a n o n l y b e o n e p e r s o n w h o c o o r d i n a t e s a ll o c c u p a t io n s i n a c c o r d a n c ew i t h o n e e n d , w h i c h is h i s. " K a n t h e r e a l lo w s t h a t t h e w o m a n r e i g n s , w h i l e t h em a n g o v e r n s , " f o r i n c l i n a t i o n r e i g n s a n d u n d e r s t a n d i n g g o v e r n s . " a 5 I n t h ef o l l o w i n g s e c t i o n w e w ill e v a l u a t e t h i s a r g u m e n t .

6 . K A N T ' S V I E W O F W O M E N : I S IT K A N T I A N . )K a n t t o o k t h e m o d e l f o r t h e r i g h t f u l s t r u c t u r e o f t h e m o s t ba s ic s oc ia l u n i t, t h ef a m i l y , f r o m a c t u a l p a t r i l i n e a l f o r m s o f h is d a y . H o w e v e r , i n h i s p o l i ti c a lp h i l o s o p h y h e t o o k a s t h e r i g h t f u l p o l i t i c a l s t r u c t u r e t h e e g a l i t a r i a n r e p u b l i c ,n o t t h e p r e v a i l i n g m o n a r c h y , w h i c h is , i n e f f e c t , t h e p a t r i l in e a l p r i n c i p l e w r i tl a r g e . A r e p u b l i c , K a n t a s s e r t s i n Perpetual Peace, i s " t h e o n l y c o n s t i t u t i o nw h i c h c a n b e d e r i v e d f r o m t h e i d e a o f a n o r i g in a l c o n t r a c t, u p o n w h i c h a llr i g h t f u l l e g is l at io n o f a p e o p l e m a y b e f o u n d e d . " I t is b a s e d u p o n t h r e e p r in c i -p le s, w h i c h c o n t r a s t m a r k e d l y w i t h K a n t 's c o n c e p t i o n o f t h o s e g o v e r n i n g t h em a r r i a g e r e l a ti o n s h i p . T h e s e a r e : l ) f r e e d o m f o r all m e m b e r s o f a s o c ie t y ( ash u m a n b e in g s ); ~ ) t h e p r in c i p le o f t h e d e p e n d e n c e o f all u p o n a si ng le c o m -m o n l e g i s la t i o n ( a s s u b j e c t s ) ; a n d 3 ) t h e p r i n c i p l e o f l e g a l e q u a l i t y o f e v e r y o n e(a s c itiz en s) .3 6 I f th i s is th e o n l y f o r m o f g o v e r n m e n t w h i c h is c o n s o n a n t w i t hh u m a n d i g n i ty a n d f r e e d o m , t h e n it c o u l d c e rt ai n ly b e a r g u e d t h a t it s h o u l db e t h e o n l y f o r m g o v e r n i n g l e s se r a s s o c ia t io n s o f ad u l ts . I t w o u l d s e e m t o b eo u r d u t y t o t ry t o b r i n g o u r p e r s o n a l a s s o c i at io n s i n to l in e w i th th i s m o d e l , j u s ta s i t is , a s K a n t h o l d s , t h e d u t y o f p e r s o n s a n d g o v e r n m e n t s t o tr y t o i m p l e -m e n t a n e g a l i ta r i a n r e p u b l i c .

B u t i f t h e s u b j u g a t i o n o f w o m e n is o p p o s e d t o K a n t 's p o l i ti ca l id e a l, i t isa ls o a t o d d s w i t h h is m o r a l i d e a l. F o r t h e p a t e r n a li s m a r g u m e n t c u t s b o t hw a y s . I n t h e Doctr ine of Vir tue K a n t h o l d s th a t it h a r m s b o t h p r o t e c t e e a n dp r o t e c t o r a l i k e . F o r t h e e q u a l r e s p e c t w h i c h s h o u l d m a r k a d u l t h u m a n r e l a -t io n s h i p s i s p r e c l u d e d b y t h e i n e q u a l it y o f t h e m a r r i a g e r e la t io n s h i p . F o r o n ea d u l t to k e e p a n o t h e r u n d e r g u a r d i a n s h i p in p e r p e t u it y , e v e n if t h at p e r s o n

34 Ak 8 : 3 5 ; K a n t ' s P o l i ti c a l W r i t i n g s , 5 4 .35 Ak 8 9 : 3 1 o .36 Ak 8 : 3 5 o ; K a n t ' s P o l i ti c a l W r i t i n g s , 9 9 -


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2 6 ~ JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPH Y 2 7 : 2 A P R I L 1 9 8 9p r e f e r s i t t o m o r a l m a t u r i t y , is w r o n g o n K a n t i a n p r i n c ip l e s . B o t h b e n e f i c i a r ya n d p a t r o n s t a n d t o l o se m o r a l l y , K a n t a r g u e s , f o r t h e o n e " w h o f r e e l y c o n -s en ts to s u b m i t t o th is c o n d i t i o n . . , c o m m i t s t h e s u p r e m e r e j e c t io n o f h ish u m a n i t y . " T h e m a s t e r , h o w e v e r , c o m m i t s " t h e i nj u st ic e o f d e p r i v i n g s o m e -o n e o f h i s f re e d o m . " 3 7

W e h a v e s e e n t h a t w o m a n ' s e n c u l t u r a t i o n a n d h e r s t a t us a s a p a w n i nn a t u r e ' s c o sm i c ch e s s g a m e p r e s e n t f o r m i d a b l e o b s ta cl es t o t h e d e v e l o p m e n to f h e r c h a r a c t e r . N o n e t h e l e s s , i f s h e d o e s p o s se s s th e m o r a l c a p a c i ty o f h e rr a t i o n a l s p e ci e s, K a n t s h o u l d w o n d e r t h a t t h is c a p a c it y c o u l d b e t h u s s t if le d . Au t i l i t a r ia n m i g h t a r g u e t h a t t h is c a n b e j u s t i f i e d , i f e v i d e n c e e x i s ts t h a t s o c i et i esi n w h i c h w o m e n ' s r o l e is s o c o n c e i v e d a r e a r g u a b l y h a p p i e r s o c ie t ie s t h a nt h o s e in w h i c h w o m e n a r e e q u a l . H o w e v e r , a K a n t i a n m u s t r e j e c t t h is c o n s e -q u e n ti a li s t a r g u m e n t ; s u c h a t r a d e - o f f b e t w e e n h a p p i n e s s a n d m o r a l i ty w o u l db e w r o n g . J u s t a s w e w o u l d n o t e x p e c t a g o o d K a n t i a n t o a c c e p t s i m i la ra r g u m e n t s a b o u t t h e b e n e f i t s o f s la v e ry , w e w o u l d n o t e x p e c t a K a n t i a n t oa c c e p t c o n s e q u e n t i a l i s t a r g u m e n t s a b o u t th e u ti li ty o f m e n ' s a n d w o m e n ' sr o le s , s o d e f i n e d . F o r t h is r e a s o n I a r g u e t h a t K a n t ' s t el e o lo g i c al a r g u m e n t sa b o u t t h e c o n t r i b u t i o n o f w o m e n t o t h e c iv il iz in g a n d t h u s t h e m o r a l i z i n g o ft h e r a c e a r e b a s ic a ll y c o n t r a r y t o K a n t i a n t e n e ts . I f w o m e n a r e r a t i o n a l c re a -t u r e s, t h e n t h e y a r e , i n p r in c i p l e , a b le t o c h o o s e t h e i r o w n p u r p o s e s a n dm o t i v a t i o n s , t o s t r u c t u r e t h e i r o w n w i ll s o n t h e b a si s o f t h e m o r a l l a w , o r t o f a ilt o d o s o .

F u r t h e r , K a n t ' s o w n s i t ua t io n m a y h a v e b l i n d e d h i m t o w h a t s e em t o m ec l e a r i m p l i c a t i o n s o f h is c o m p r e h e n s i v e t h e o r y o f c h a r a c t e r , w h i c h i n c l u d e sb o t h t h e b a si s i n p r a c t ic a l r e a s o n o f t h e c a p a c it y f o r d e v e l o p i n g g o o d c h a r -a c t e r , a n d s p e c i fi e s t h e k i n d s o f s o c ia l a n d p o l it i ca l v a l u e s a n d i n s t i t u t io n sw h i c h f o s t e r i t s d e v e l o p m e n t . R e a l i zi n g th a t t h e a g e n t ' s m o r a l c h o i c e s a r es t r u c t u r e d , i n p a r t , b y o n e ' s r e l a t i o n t o t h e s e v a l u e s a n d i n s ti t ut i on s , t h e t r u eK a n t i a n p o s i t i o n w o u l d b e t h a t w o m e n ' s l iv es s h o u l d b e a l te r e d . T h e i r e d u c a -t io n s h o u l d n o l o n g e r b e a i m e d a t d e v e l o p i n g m e r e l y f u n c ti o n a l " v ir tu e s " b u tt o w a r d e n l i g h t e n m e n t , b o t h o f th e w o r l d i t se l f a n d o f th e i r o w n d e v e l o p i n gw ills. W o m e n s h o u l d b e a c c o r d e d t h e r e s p e c t d u e t h e m a s r a t i o n a l b e i n g s, a n dl e d to r e s p e c t t h e i r o w n c a p a c i t y f o r s e l f -d i r e c ti o n . T h i s m a y c o m e a b o u t , i np a r t, w h e n p o li ti ca l e q u a l it y a n d e c o n o m i c o p p o r t u n i t y f r e e t h e m f r o m t h en e e d o f a l i f e l o n g p r o t e c t o r . E v e n c o n s i d e r i n g w o m a n ' s s p e ci al t el e o lo g i c alf u n c t i o n , it c o u l d b e a r g u e d t h a t w o m e n w o u l d t h e n f i n d it p o s si b le t o d e v e l o pt h e i r la t e n t b u t u n d e n i a b l e m o r a l c a p a c it ie s .

T h i s is n o t t o d e n y t h a t i n K a n t ' s v i ew t h e a g e n t h e r s e l f is t h e m o s t i m p o r -t a n t c au s a l f a c t o r i n c h a r a c t e r d e v e l o p m e n t , n o r is i t t o im p l y th a t i n t h e w o r l d

37 Ak 89: 333; Anthropology, 193.


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264 JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOP HY 27:z A P R I L ~989to develop their own character; to be good women, not good persons. Toignore the moral consequences of their role is to ignore Kant's analysis of thepolitical and cultural conditions which foste r moral development , as well as hiswarnings about the pernicious moral effects of inequality and paternalism.

Second, Kant's claim that women's purposes are not their own, but na-ture's, is inconsistent with Kant's view of human beings as self-directing. Forwhat it is to be a human moral agent is to be someone with the capacity to sethis or her own purposes. As he writes in the Doctr ine o f V ir tue : "Now anoth erperson can indeed compel me to perfo rm actions which are means to his end,but he cannot compel me to have an end; only I myself can make something myend."39 In subsuming hu man purposes und er nature's, Kant here places teleol-ogy over morality, allowing nature to use women only as a means to achieveher own purposes. As a consequence of this inversion, women are in perpetualtutelage, unable to actualize their latent rational capacity. This is patentlyinconsistent with Kant's position on the absolute worth of all human beings.

The third and most impor tant conclusion goes beyond questions of consis-tency, and shows the adequacy of Kant's complete theory. Having unde rstoodthe problems surrounding Kant's view of women, we can understand, bynegation, the social and political conditions which foster or thwart t he develop-ment o f moral character. Notwithstand ing the tradition of Kantian criticism, itseems clear that from this broader perspective we can see that the humanrational capacity, tho ugh pivotal, is not itself sufficient for character develop-ment in the hu man agent. In addition to the rational ability to grasp the morallaw, the agent must have, first, a certain sensibility: moral feeling, conscience,love of one's neighbor, and a basic self-esteem. In addition, the agent shouldbe free from dependence on others for political direction or for basic eco-nomic needs. A good education, directed toward the inculcation of civilizedvalues as well as to the str eng thening of the will, is impor tant; and it is helpfulto live in a society whose practices and institutions reflect the love and respectwhich should mark one's relationships with others. Finally, a political orderwhich is based on republican principles fosters the deve lopment o f characterin its citizens. All these internal and external factors contribute to characterdevelopment in Kant's comprehensive view. When the Kantian account isfully unders too d, its adequacy in this respect is patent.

In conclusion, it is appropriat e to turn to the broader teleological questionwhich Kant raises at the end of his section on character in the Anthropology .This is the question of whether the human species, as a whole, could ever, inthis world, realize the ideal of good character in their lives. The politicaldimension o f this moral ideal is again salient. If the species is to develop moral

s9 Ak 1 380;Doctrine of Virtue,38.


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DEVELOPM ENT OF CHARACTER 265c h a r a c t e r , i t m u s t b e c o m e ci vi li ze d ; f u r t h e r , its m e m b e r s m u s t b e f r e e a n de q u a l c i t iz e n s o f s e l f - g o v e r n i n g p o l i t ie s . I t is i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h a t t h e c o n d i -t io n s d e m a n d e d b y th i s r e g u l a ti v e i d e a l a r e v e r y li ke th o s e r e q u i r e d f o r t h ep o l i t i c a l i d e a l o f p e a c e . K a n t c l o s e s t h e A n t h r o p o l o g y a s f o l l o w s : " w e c a n n o te x p e c t t h e e n d t o b e a tt a in e d b y th e f r e e a c c o r d o f i n d i v i d u a l s , b u t o n l y b y ap r o g r e s s i v e o r g a n i z a t i o n o f t h e e a r t h i n to a n d t o w a r d s t h e s p e c ie s , a s a s y s te mh e l d t o g e t h e r b y c o s m o p o l i t a n b o n ds ." 4 oC l a r io n U n i v e r s it y o f P e n n s y l v a n i a

4o Ak 89: 333; Anthropology, 193.

The Development of Character in Kantian Moral Theory

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