Video & Podcast Resources on Immanuel Kant's Groundwork For The Metaphysics Of Morals

21 videos and 21 podcast episodes on Kant's Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals

Today is the 300th anniversary of the great German idealist Immanuel Kant’s birthday in 1724. A number of celebrations, large and small have been taking place. Since I was planning on writing another post providing resources for self-directed study of philosophy today, I decided it would make complete sense to center it on one of Immanuel Kant’s works.

The Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals is definitely not the only work of ethical philosophy in the Kantian corpus of work. Indeed one could even argue that in terms of sheer importance it is outweighed by the actual Metaphysics of Morals, or by the Critique of Practical Reason. But the Groundwork is arguably the most common text through which people encounter Kant’s ethics. In fact, for many it will likely be the only text (unfortunately so).

As it happens, it is a text I have routinely taught in my own ethics classes, and I’ve produced a number of resources to help students and lifelong learners work their way through it. It’s not an easy work of philosophy to dive right into, so these might well be of use to those who want to make a first attempt at it. Or even those who after multiple reads are still struggling with it.

If you’d like to get yourself a copy of the text, here’s an Amazon affiliate link to the Groundwork. And now, on to links to the 21 videos and 21 corresponding podcast episodes covering all the key ideas, arguments, and distinctions of the work.

• The Good Will - video format | podcast format

• Reason, Happiness, and Duty - video format | podcast format

• The Notion of Duty - video format | podcast format

• Three Types of Imperatives - video format | podcast format

• The 1st Formulation of the Categorical Imperative - video format | podcast format

• Kant’s Examples for the 1st Formulation of the Categorical Imperative - video format | podcast format

• More Examples for the 1st Formulation of the Categorical Imperative - video format | podcast format

• Universal Rules and Exceptions for Oneself - video format | podcast format

• The 2nd Formulation of the Categorical Imperative - video format | podcast format

• Kant’s Examples for the 2nd Formulation of the Categorical Imperative - video format | podcast format

• More Examples for the 2nd Formulation of the Categorical Imperative - video format | podcast format

• Means, Ends, Value, and Human Dignity - video format | podcast format

• The 3rd Formulation of the Categorical Imperative - video format | podcast format

• Three Modes of Presenting the Principle of Morality - video format | podcast format

• Heteronomy and Spurious Principles of Morality - video format | podcast format

• Freedom of the Will - video format | podcast format

• The Thing In Itself and The Free Human Being - video format | podcast format

• Faculties of Reason, Understanding, and Sense - video format | podcast format

• How Categorical Imperatives Are Possible - video format | podcast format

• The Dialectic Of Reason - video format | podcast format

• The Limits of Practical Philosophy - video format | podcast format

If you do decide that you’d like to study Kant’s Groundwork, I hope these resources will be of use to you.