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Kant’s Ethical Theory
The Categorical Imperative
At the heart of Kant's ethics is the concept of the Categorical Imperative (CI), a universal moral law that dictates that certain actions are obligatory regardless of personal desires or consequences. Kant formulated the CI in several ways, two of which are particularly notable:

Universalizability Principle: "Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law."
This principle suggests that one should only act in ways that could be applied universally without contradiction. For example, lying to achieve a goal would not pass this test because, if everyone lied, trust would dissolve, making lying self-defeating.
Humanity Principle: "Act in such a way that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person of another, always at the same time as an end and never merely as a means."