Conditional versus unconditional commands
What Conditional versus unconditional commands means in Philosophy A-Level, as defined for AQA.
Definition of Conditional versus unconditional commands
Check what you remember
Read the wording for your board, then hide it and explain Conditional versus unconditional commands in your own words. Rough notes are fine. This is a self-check, with no mark or grade.
Reference: AQA
A hypothetical imperative is conditional, telling you to do something as a means to a desired end, while a categorical imperative is unconditional, commanding an action as required in itself.
Topics that use Conditional versus unconditional commands
- Normative ethical theories (AQA A-Level)
Related terms
- Acting from duty
- Consequences as the determinant of moral value
- Consequentialism
- Contradiction in conception
- Contradiction in will
- Demandingness and alienation
- Doctrine of the mean
- Eudaimonia as final end and self-sufficient good
Using Conditional versus unconditional commands in the exam
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