Kant: The Universal Law Formation Of The Categorical Imperative

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in
which paramedics always answer widows truthfully when queried. Therefore, this
maxim is logical and everyone can abide by it without causing a logical
impossibility. The next logical step is to apply the second stage of the test.
The second requirement is that a rational being would will this maxim to
become a universal law. In testing this part, you must decide whether in every
case, a rational being would believe that the morally correct action is to tell
the truth. First, it is clear that the widow expects to know the truth. A lie
would only serve to spare her feelings if she believed it to be the truth.
Therefore, even people who would consider lying to her, must concede that the
correct and expected action is to tell the truth. By asking she has already
decided, good or bad, that she must know the truth.
What if telling the truth brings the widow to the point where she
commits suicide, however? Is telling her the truth then a moral action although
its ...

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pain from being hurt
further seems like an excellent universal law. Unfortunately for this line of
objection, the only reason a lie works is because the person being lied to
believes it to be the truth. In a situation where every widow is lied to in
order to spare her feelings, then they never get the truth. This leads to a
logical contradiction because no one will believe a lie if they know it a lie
and the maxim fails.
Perhaps the die-hard liar can regroup and test a narrower maxim. If it
is narrow enough so that it encompasses only a few people, then it passes the
first test. For example, the maxim could read, "When facing a distraught widow
whose late husband has driven off a ...

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