The Anatomy of Ethics
Is It Ethical to Believe in Two Opposing Ideas at the Same Time?
Jul 16, 2007 Juliette Riitters
How Deep Must You Probe Into the Labyrinth of Self?
Or maybe the question is: how deep can you dig? If you are ready to grab that shovel and start excavating your soul you will probably find diametrically opposed beliefs that you must examine, and be ready to discard the one that does not coincide with what you know to be true. It may be an ugly, painful rending of comfort and reason. If you do not want to cut through the connective roots then you might as well take your garden spade and head for the beach.
To remove the layers of soil between your assumptions and strike the mother-lode of truth you must stand back and look at it as objectively as a surgeon wielding a scalpel, cutting through healthy tissue to extract the malignancy and scrape clear any remnants of diseased thinking. Ethics are not the tree that has grown for decades, that is the fruit. The roots are what must be either nurtured or torn out.
Start With the Obvious.
Do you believe slavery is morally acceptable? No? But are there not circumstances in which it can be excused? If not, why? If you have reached the conclusion that the lives of all people have an intrinsically equal value then you cannot accept the proposition that ownership of another human being is a morally acceptable value.
Dig deeper. Is life in general simple; is it fair? Everyone has his or her own personal trials and grievances to work through to reach a place of contentment. Happiness? Maybe; if you are lucky. Despair if you give up. But contentment means accepting pain and sorrow as a facet of living in this imperfect world. Through this acceptance you will experience joy as well as suffering. Consenting to live in this world as it is in reality necessarily means accepting your burdens as a condition inherent to existing.
Can You Compartmentalize or Rationalize the Truth?
Well, certainly you may attempt to do so. But the problem with truth is that it is true. Believing the sun revolved around the world never made the world stop revolving around the sun. Ignoring the death camps did not save 11 million people from dying. If you can dog paddle through life without thinking about the depths beneath you, you will probably survive. But blind survival shares no likeness with a life lived in actuality.
If you are one of those who aver that abortion is murder unless rape or incest is involved you are not even within shouting distance of ethical consistency. You are, in essence, saying that murdering a child is murder except when it is not murder. Is this rational thought? Here you are veering off the map - branching off into your own safe tunnel, albeit away from truth, logic and reason. Why do you do it? Because the child is not worthy of life if the mother is unwilling to face the reality that life isn't fair. Do you trade a human life, equal in value to your own, because it is easier than the alternative?
If so, put down the shovel and pick up the garden spade. The whole of life is filled with lesser discomforts; simpler choices. These are the tests that strengthen your resolve and your will to face the heroic battles and come out on the side of truth.
Fractures and Fissures
The truth is remarkably consistent. If you are honest and objective you will take note of the shafts, which break off and meander towards a less disquieting existence. Do you want to live or exist? This is what you must ask yourself. But do not delude yourself into thinking you will be at peace with your choices or that your mind will let you rest easily. The conscience is made of much sterner stuff than that.
What Lurks Beneath?
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