According to Kant, philosophy can be divided into physics, ethics, and logic. Logic is concerned with the forms of thinking while the other two branches are concerned with subjects and the laws which they are subject to.  Kant’s perception of philosophy is based on duty and moral laws.  If a code is morally valid, it should apply to all rational human beings without exception. Moral laws originate as a result of reasons. Kant argues that the actions of human beings are aimed at achieving goodwill, which is described as happiness in human beings.  For an act to be classified as morally right, it should be done with the aim of achieving a good will. This implies that human beings should act on the basis of duty. According to Kant, acts which have amoral with are the ones based on dusty irrespective of whether they are contrary to personal inclinations and selfish purposes.

Actions that are done out of duty are carried out to respect the law. Dutiful actions proceed according to subjective principles that guide the will, called maxim. Most of the maxims which motivate our actions show us how to achieve our ends.  Thus, for an action to have moral worth, it must be performed to follow the law. The laws which govern human acts are universal in that they apply to all rational human beings.  What human beings engage in is determined by the ordinary use of reason, which is universal to every sensible person.  However, the power of needs and inclinations push people away from the strict devotion to duty. As a result, moral philosophy is fundamental because it guides people on what to do, base on the law and reason.

Actions performed purely out of strict devotion to duty cannot be determined through experience. For an act to be moral, it should be guided by the law which is universal to all human beings. As a result, since people have a different experience, then this aspect cannot be used to define dutiful actions.  When human beings act for reasons, they are guided by commands.  Imperatives are the formula for commands, and they govern people on what to do, and they only apply to human will. Hypothetical imperatives command people to do a specific act to accomplish a particular end. On the other hand, categorical imperatives only command human beings to do a particular act and are appropriate for morality because the actions are not aimed at achieving any selfish desire. In categorical imperative, people engage in specific acts because it is their duty to do so.

The only reason why a person should do an act without considering the ultimate is that it conforms to the law. In categorical imperative, the reason for doing a particular action should be universal to all rational human beings. For a duty to be perfect, it should admit no exceptions in favor of personal desires. Thus, according to Kant, human acts are guided by commands called imperatives. For an action to qualify to be morally right, it should not be based on the result to be obtained because people participate in different activities to achieve different desires. As a result, human cats should be guided by the categorical imperative, which commands people to carry out duties because they conform to the law. It does not matter whether the acts are in contrary to the end wills of people. Thus, the categorical imperative is what determines whether an act is moral or not because the reason for carrying out a particular activity is universal to all human beings.

The ends mostly determine the will to actions.  Objective ends depend on motives which are universal to all human beings while the subjective ones are based on personal desires.  The categorical imperative is only based on objective ends because the command for a person to do an action is dictated by the effect the act will have on all human beings but not a particular person.  Every rational nature exists as an end in itself because all the laws which govern duties are made to achieve maximum good for all human beings. The rational end itself dictates the moral code. This explains why the categorical imperative is the one who commands people on what to do.  Unless an act is made to achieve a universal benefit for all people, it cannot be categorized as moral.

The universal law is independent of any of our interests, and thus it is said to be autonomous. The autonomy of the rational will can only explain the origin of the moral law. A moral act can solely be based on legislation which make a kingdom of ends possible. An ethical will cannot be achieved without categorical imperative, which is the primary source of morality. Feelings cannot be used as a standards measure of differentiating moral acts because they differ among people. Thus, the morality of an action can be determined on the basis of the categorical imperative, which commands people to act in a particular manner for the benefit of all human beings. The law defines the duties which people participate in, and the rules are set to achieve the ultimate good for all human beings.

 
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