Writing about morality in 2024, especially in fewer than 800 words, is a dangerous undertaking. Subjects involving religion, belief systems, norms, and epic struggles between good and evil are inherently risky.
But at a time when democracy is under attack, authoritarianism is on the rise, and people are torn apart by conflict, we must ask: Are Americans “good” people? What is “good”? Who sets our moral code?
Eminent historians and philosophers have debated the underlying moral nature of human beings for centuries. Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics To Immanuel Kant’s Deontological Ethics, About the power of human reasoning as a moral guide. Plato’s Ethics,or David HumeA great 18th century philosopher, he famously said, “Reason is the slave of the passions.”
There are many different theories about how morality is determined, including from above (e.g., from God), from below (e.g., from individuals), through systems of governance, laws, policies, legislation, and through cultural norms and practices.
When thinking about our own morality and mortality, it is instructive to look at countries whose institutions we oppose.
Let’s take China as an example.
Centuries ago, Chinese ethical codes introduced ideas about the social good. Some of the great moral philosophers of ancient China were: Laozi, Best known for his Taoist principles of simplicity and honesty, Confucius “A superior man” A humane and thoughtful person who is driven by a desire to do good rather than personal gain.
Modern Chinese Communism offers its people an ancient moral compass to follow. Communist Party orders To serve society as a whole, in order to avoid a decline in public morals that could weaken the nation and invite foreign influence. Censorship and Propaganda To enforce it.
Then there is Russia.
In the Soviet era, moral thought Dialectical theory Following the ideas of Lenin and Marx, power was vested in a centralized party of the proletariat and socialist revolutionaries.It is the opposite of the corrupt morality of capitalist society.”
But the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1999 and the rise of Vladimir Putin led to a new Post-Communist Morality A society emerged with a nostalgia for the old notion of empire and a reliance on total government control over every aspect of life.
New investigation by The Washington Post Buoyed by winning another term in the presidency, President Vladimir Putin has made it clear that he is moving the country in an “Orthodox” direction — one that values fundamental ultra-conservative views rooted in Christian faith and illiberal dogma over traditional Communist ideals.
“In November 2022, Putin signed a decree defining Orthodox values, strict morality and rejection of LGBTQ+ identities as crucial to Russia’s national security,” the Post reports. “Putin has outlined a messianic mission to save the world from a decadent, permissive West, and he hopes this approach will be embraced by socially conservative countries in the global south. A highly politicized justice system and media tightly controlled by the Kremlin have been used to crack down on nightclubs and parties, and new patriotic obligations have been imposed on artists, filmmakers and cultural institutions.”
Of course, we went back to America. The great moral struggle We debate book bans, guns, immigration, reproductive rights, transgender care, freedom of speech, and many other aspects of life.
Moral debates in America today, as New York Times columnist David Brooks puts it, pit groups against each other. Calls “Sources of meaning deeper than personal preference: faith, family, land, flag.”
One of our deepest moral dilemmas is how to foster diversity in an America that embraces a diversity of beliefs. The controversial black intellectual W.E.B. Du Bois argued that for democracy to thrive, racial justice must be practiced in America and in its approach to the world. “Humanity is intermingled to the bone,” he said. I have written From an article published in Foreign Affairs magazine in 1935.
Perhaps the best advice for America is to remain open-minded and willing to debate, and to embrace a degree of moral ambiguity so as not to be dogmatic and uncompromising in its judgments.
Like Socrates Said“The unexamined life is not worth living.”
Tara D. Sonenshein is a senior adjunct scholar at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
