The Thoughts Of Kant Through Systemic Functional Linguistics [8]

Russell (1961: 683):

The essence of morality is to be derived from the concept of law; for, though everything in nature acts according to laws, only a rational being has the power of acting according to the idea of law; i.e. by Will.  The idea of an objective principle in so far as it is compelling to the will is called a command of the reason, and the formula of the command is called an imperative.

Blogger Comment:

From the perspective of Systemic Functional Linguistic theory, 'everything in nature acts according to laws' blurs the modality distinction between modalisation (usuality/probability) and modulation (obligation/inclination).  The laws of physics, for example, are laws in the sense of modalisation.

In contrast, 'the power of acting according to the idea of law…by Will' corresponds only to modulation, not to modalisation.  The 'Will' corresponds to a Senser desiring, the Nucleus of a desiderative mental clause.  Desiderative mental processes project proposals, commands and offers, which are agnate with obligation and inclination (modulation).  Commands are congruently realised by imperative mood.