Blackwell Reference Online

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E thics, philosophy of language, logic As a central concept in Kant 's moral philosophy, a law that must be obeyed and followed even in opposition to inclination. A command is formulated through an imperative and is expressed as an ought . It is the subjection or conformity of the inclinations of the will to objective moral law . Categorical imperatives are commands in the absolute sense, while hypothetical imperatives are commands that are subject to certain conditions regarding the aims of those to whom they are addressed. In contemporary philosophy of language, a command is a kind of speech act which, when addressed to other people, expresses a mandate and involves a prescription. The logic of commands or imperatives has been part of a more general development of contemporary logic. “The representation of an objective principle insofar as it necessitates the will is called a command (of reason).” Kant, Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals ... log in or subscribe to read full text