Justice with Michael Sandel

tv show

poster for Justice with Michael Sandel

12 total episodes

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1 seasons

First Aired September 09, 2009

Genres:

Overview

Justice is the first Harvard course to be made freely available online and on public television. In this 12-part series, college professor Michael Sandel challenges us with hard moral dilemmas and invites us to ponder the right thing to do-in politics and in our everyday lives.

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Mind Your Motive/The Supreme Principle of Morality

Season 1 - Episode 6 - 0h 0m

Air Date

September 09, 2009

Overview

Professor Sandel introduces Immanuel Kant, a challenging but influential philosopher. Kant rejects utilitarianism. He argues that each of us has certain fundamental duties and rights that take precedence over maximizing utility. Kant rejects the notion that morality is about calculating consequences. When we act out of duty—doing something simply because it is right—only then do our actions have moral worth. Kant gives the example of a shopkeeper who passes up the chance to shortchange a customer only because his business might suffer if other customers found out. According to Kant, the shopkeepers action has no moral worth, because he did the right thing for the wrong reason.