Introduction
Kant’s philosophy bases human actions judgment on basis of morality to be based on the intention of the person irrespective of the consequences (Kant, 1996 p.18). In the film Gone Baby Gone, the kidnapping of Amanda forms the main action of the movie as it is the source of the resultant ongoing of the movie. As a result of this, various killings and accidental deaths occur in the rescue of Amada. Several of the deaths are caused by the private investigator Patrick Kenzie.
Patrick Kenzie in his move to rescue Amanda accepts to exchange Captain Doyle’s move to exchange Amanda with drugs recovered from Cheese the drug lord. Patrick knows that drugs are detrimental and prohibited in the community but he accepts them to be returned to the drug lord. Patrick’s actions are morally acceptable as in accordance with Kant’s moral philosophy. His intension for the whole engagement is the rescue of Amanda and he is bound to pursue only that. Having his intensions morally right and acceptable to the society, other considerable immoral acts that occur in pursuant of the main intension cannot render the whole action immoral (Kant, 1996 p.28). His intension in this case is the rescue of Amanda’s supreme life.
When a seven year old boy was kidnapped two months after Amanda, Patrick was in his rescue upon receiving the news. At the scene where a shoot out occurs and Nick is shot and later dies of bullet of wounds. At the scene Patrick instead of going for Nick’s rescue and maybe quick reference to hospital, he rushes into the boy molester house. It is rationally arguable that Patrick would have concentrated on rescuing Nick first before going for the boy or the molester whose fate is undetermined and unclear. However, according to Kant’s moral philosophy that categorical imperative is the only driving force that if someone break it he or she is pronounced morally unethical. It is therefore, irrational to violate the categorical imperative and autonomy is the only way to respect categorical imperative (Kant, 1996 p.49). Patrick’s move to go for the boy and the molester is rationally ethical on the grounds that he respects his categorical imperative-the intension of rescuing the child. Kant’s supports such move claiming that morally ethical actions should be driven by respect of duty and moral laws. Therefore, Patrick’s to rescue the kid instead of going for Nick is rationally moral though it disturbed him when he realizes that Nick passed away.
In the same scene, Patrick shot dead the child molester; no law has ever passed withdrawal of life from another human being out of willful acts unless it happens accidental. Patrick kills the child molester. Killing is forbidden by the natural law. However, Kant’s philosophy is in support of every action that is based on reasonable pursuant of rational duties with respect to the categorical imperative (Kant, 1996 p.98). Patrick killing of the child molester is justified because he killed him to avoid the repeat of two things. A repeat of a dangerous shooting engagement that resulted Nick the wounding and later his death in addition to prevention of the repeat of kidnap for children like what happened to the rescued boy and Amanda. Moreover, Patrick was on a rescue mission and thus his intension was to rescue the boy irrespective of the consequences there in. Patrick’s actions including the pursuance of Remy to death are rational as according to Kant’s moral philosophy though they are appearing immoral.
Works Cited
Hooker, Brad. Developing Deontology: New Essays in Ethical Theory. Malden, MA: Wiley, 2012. Print.
Kant, Immanuel, and Mary J. Gregor. Practical Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Print.
