In ‘On the Supposed Right to Lie from Philanthropy’, Kant defends a position that cannot be salvaged. The essay is nonetheless important because it helps us understand his philosophy of law and, more specifically, his interpretation of the social contract. Kant considers truthfulness a strict legal duty because it is the necessary condition for the juridical state. As attested by Kant’s rejection of Beccaria’s arguments against the death penalty, not even the right to life has such strict unconditional status. Within the juridical state, established by the social contract, the (single) innate right to freedom is transformed into a bundle of merely positive rights, including the right to life. Understanding the reason for the rejection of ‘the right to lie from philanthropy’ thus helps us understand the, in a sense, ‘positivist’ character of Kant’s legal philosophy. In conclusion, some suggestions are made to bring his position closer to our common moral understanding.

中文翻译：

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论康德说真话的责任

在“关于从慈善事业中说谎的假定权利”中，康德捍卫了一个无法挽救的立场。尽管如此，这篇文章仍然很重要，因为它有助于我们理解他的法律哲学，更具体地说，是他对社会契约的解释。康德认为诚实是一项严格的法律义务，因为它是司法国家的必要条件。正如康德拒绝贝卡利亚反对死刑的论点所证明的那样，即使是生命权也没有如此严格的无条件地位。在由社会契约确立的司法国家内部，（单一的）与生俱来的自由权利被转化为一束纯粹的积极权利，包括生命权。因此，理解拒绝“慈善撒谎的权利”的原因有助于我们理解，在某种意义上，康德法哲学的“实证主义”特征。总之，提出了一些建议，以使他的立场更接近我们共同的道德理解。