ABSTRACT
Perfection of self and duties of beneficence Kant gives four illustrations in his 1785 The Foundation of the Metaphysic of Morals to show how the categorical imperative serves as ‘the general canon for all moral judgement of action.’ The four are divided into perfect and imperfect duties, a division found in natural law theories from Grotius onward (Schneewind 1990:49-50) that Kant acknowledges he is adopting largely for the sake of convenience. The only explanation he offers is that a perfect duty ‘allows no exception in the interests of inclination’ (1785: 421n). The perfect duties among Kant’s illustrations are the ones we considered in the previous chapter, the duty not to make a lying promise and the duty not to commit suicide. The other two are the duties to develop one’s talents and to help others.
