In Kant's vast and dense philosophical collection, there lies an entire moral code for people to follow. As one of the last traditional philosophers, Kant builds his extraordinary philosophical system from scratch, specifically discussing morality as applied to people. Kant's categorical imperatives, just one aspect of his moral law, apply to all situations and impose absolute authority. Kant formulates his moral code in several ways. First, it says to act as if the maxim of one's action should become a universal law of nature, and also to act in such a way as to never use oneself or another simply as a means, but always at the same time as the end. Kant openly demands that people not exploit each other for their own benefit. The phrase do unto others as you would have them do unto you best demonstrates Kant's categorical imperatives. Similar to how Kant wanted people to act in accordance with each other and never simply as a means to an end, the actions of many characters in the narrative support the idea that the end result always validates how they are achieved. While desired end results can sometimes be achieved, Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray and Koestler's Darkness at Noon demonstrate that the ends do not justify the means. Of course, the ends achieved by the characters Nicolas Rubashov and Dorian Gray can justify the means that achieve them. Dorian Gray connects to this maxim when he voluntarily gives up his soul for the promise of remaining young and beautiful forever. Near the beginning of the novel, before Dorian comes under the overwhelming influence of Lord Henry, Dorian initially looks with anguish at his portrait of Basil: “How sad… middle of paper… interrogation by Rubashov; his incessant use of sleep deprivation leads to an unreliable confession, far from the truth. Furthermore, in James' pursuit of Prince Charming to avenge his sister's death, James himself takes it upon himself to track down this man. In an attempt to avenge his sister, James fails completely when she dies unexpectedly while trying to achieve his goal. Similarly, Dorian's manipulation of Alan Campbell to dispose of a murdered body pushes Alan to the edge and ultimately to suicide. It calls into question whether the end result justified all the negative consequences and condescending means used to achieve them. With all the social upheaval and political unrest in the world, one has to wonder how different the world would have been if people had not viewed ends as necessary outcomes, regardless of the path used to achieve them..