One must be a right individual; one must follow duty-based ethics. Following duty-based ethics means that one will base their actions on ethical reasoning and their ethical system, while what is inside (one’s character and virtues) is not of any consequence. If in any society, the civilians were only interested in each other’s true character, then virtue-based ethics would follow, but in reality, it is one’s actions toward others that define their morals, as well as their worth to society and themselves. This means that one ought to be a right individual. A right individual does not automatically act in exact accordance with the law, but in acting right creates the most ethical and pleasurable environment for themselves and others.
Following duty-based ethics does not necessarily mean following whatever given law is being imposed. Governmental law, in many cases, does not exist to ensure everyone commits ethical actions, or at least not commit unethical ones; it exists to promote a static social order. Immorality is still permitted under a functioning judicial system. Simply doing what is right under the law does not give an action the moral high ground. Instead, one must hold the wisdom to know when breaking the law is precisely what is needed to make the best ethical decision. Duty-based ethics requires intelligence and a great amount of perception and knowledge. It is why mature adults may find themselves more concerned with their actions rather than their character: they have attained the wisdom to do so. For children, on the other hand, good character must be taught, and with a good education, young people may grow up into older people who will have the authority to make their own right decisions. Those decisions, made with their ethical system in mind, are duty-based.
Duty-based ethics for the individual are true nourishment for the soul. Descartes put forth the phrase, “I think, therefore I am,” but Descartes was also a very famous philosopher, and the same rule does not seem to apply to a layperson. Instead, the phrase, “I do, therefore I am,” has existed, in one way or another, to give the human actor meaning and description. Duty-based ethics place the emphasis not on thinking, as Descartes was privileged to do, but on the actions that modern humans must perform. With an emphasis on action, ethics do not exist abstractly for the philosopher aware of virtues and inner inclinations, but for everyone who would ever need to act. Thus, it is most beneficial for the person who acts every day (in other words all of us), to follow duty-based ethics; doing things and understanding that they are ethical is assured to bring more satisfaction then simply doing things without any awareness of their ethical standing. The individual who acts with ethics in mind need not lose sleep over the intricacies of his character, since he is what he does; I act ethically, therefore I am ethical. For the sake of the individual’s well-being and general practical self-satisfaction, duty-based ethics are most sensible.
The community full of even just one person who acts with duty-based ethics in mind will benefit much more than one where everyone is in their own head all day, thinking of how to be most virtuous, how to perfect their inner world. When the civilians in a community grasp that they have a duty to their community (as many ethical systems would have it), or simply the people around them, the actions that result will likely be right. A few examples of these right actions include anything from basic public service (volunteer firefighter, nurses, etc.) to individual acts of service (mowing your neighbor’s yard as well as your own). All these right actions can only improve the health and vibrancy of a community, and all the people in it. The virtues of an individual are not of any importance when the members of a community respect their responsibility to one another; action is foregrounded.
Duty-based ethics respect many kinds of ethical systems, including even hedonism with the prioritizing of self-satisfaction, utilitarianism with the improvement of community, and Kantian ethics with individuals respecting their responsibilities. As long as duty-based actions are in place, and the principal of helping all and harming none is primary, virtues and other pursuits can be secondary. And while none of these systems are completely coterminous with the use of duty-based ethics, they all come close enough so that one’s ethical standing is impenetrable to any sort of virtue-based assessment.
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