Honeste Vive: Dignity in Kant's Theory of Juridical Obligation

In the Doctrine of Right, Kant introduces a puzzling duty: honeste vive, or the duty of rightful honour. I argue that honeste vive can be understood as the “juridical counterpart” to moral dignity in his ethical works. However, this duty is juridical and not ethical because it presupposes a conception of what one has the authority to impose externally on other individuals, regardless of one’s motives. It is an internal juridical duty because its correlate, the only innate right, should be understood as a liberty-right (“no duty”) and introduces no positive juridical duties between persons. For my argument, I analyse the link between honeste vive and the only innate right. Central to my interpretation is the idea that juridical blamelessness (Unbescholtenheit) is a fundamental aspect of innate right, helping us understand Kant’s overall project in the Doctrine of Right, which I take to be a theory of juridical obligation. In conclusion, I explain how honeste vive relates to the other Ulpian principles and argue that Kant provides a distinctive modal theory of juridical obligation.

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