I think you are missing the point regarding Kant’s mention of free will here. You need to consider Kant’s explanation of why it is acceptable to enslave or kill animals, but unacceptable to enslave or kill human beings. Hint: it has nothing to do with ‘consciousness’.
His reason for excluding the possibility that entities without free will are moral agents was not simply to avoid having to participate in discussions regarding whether a bowling ball has behaved morally. Limiting morality to entities with free will has consequences in Kant’s philosophy. Edit: minor change in wording.
I think you are missing the point regarding Kant’s mention of free will here. You need to consider Kant’s explanation of why it is acceptable to enslave or kill animals, but unacceptable to enslave or kill human beings. Hint: it has nothing to do with ‘consciousness’.
His reason for excluding the possibility that entities without free will are moral agents was not simply to avoid having to participate in discussions regarding whether a bowling ball has behaved morally. Limiting morality to entities with free will has consequences in Kant’s philosophy.
Edit: minor change in wording.