Self-Interest and The Golden Rule

In Kant’s point of view, “The Good Will” is the only intrinsic good, and the duty is how good will is expressed. In Kant’s three propositions of duty, he lays out what duty is and ought to be. Now we as a class understand that duty cannot be considered morally good if it is done out of self-interest. However, millions of people know and follow “The Golden Rule,” which is considered to be self-interested. Some of these people have never even realized that what they do is self-interested – not saying that the Golden Rule is a bad thing to live by and follow. Why do we as a society follow such a self-interested rule without even realizing it?

“Treat others as you would like to be treated.” I wasn’t a mean child, and most children aren’t. However, our parents, grandparents, teachers, etc. all told us that we should treat others as we would like to be treated. “Follow The Golden Rule.” For the majority of my early childhood education, that was the main rule discussed in class. However, we never discussed the fact that we should do things just for the sake of doing them. Treat others with respect because that’s how you would like to be treated. Don’t steal, don’t talk when others are speaking, etc. because that’s YOU would like to be treated. It’s never you should just do it out of duty, obligation, or just for the sake of doing. We’ve been taught to do this and care more about doing morally good things for ourselves than just doing it because it is good or it is dutiful. This isn’t bad in any sense of the word, but what I’ve been wondering about since we discussed this in class is: why do we focus so much on ourselves?

I ask these questions because I am not totally sure about the answers. Yes, it is okay to be self-interested. Yes, it is okay to not be self-interested. But whenever we discuss or learn about morally good things in school or from our guardians, we learn to worry about others but only because you want them to be worried about you. As an 18 year-old, I’ve been told to do things for the sake of myself without even realizing that what I thought was morally good and for the sake of others, was also and mainly for the sake of myself.

Just for reference the first proposition of duty is: “A human action is morally good, not because it is done from inclination – still less so because it is done for self-interest – but only because it is done for the sake of duty.”