Friday, December 5, 2014
When discussing The Need for Three Independent virtues, I found it interesting that the author described solidarity as thought directed towards the transformation of society. This concept seems pretty contradictory to me, especially since we discussed whether or not happiness was individually or socially determined. Obviously society cannot exist or transform without some individual thought, but what do you think of this concept? Are happiness, virtues, and principles socially determined/agreed upon with individual determination as its roots? Vice-versa? Is this idea even applicable or relevant to other topics of discussion we've had?
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I think it is pretty contradictory as well. Dictionaries define solidarity as mutual support among a group so the question I have is this mutual support only voiced to help transform society? What about the individual voices expressing their opinions? Do we say they do not help transform society? I think that principles are just as you describe them, Drake, socially agreed upon with individual determinations at their foundations. Rules and laws that are passed by Congress are often this way. Bills come to the House floor from the individual determination that something needs fixing or regulating. But then the House and sometimes the Senate vote on these bills or regulations. Now this is only a small percentage of the US's population voting, but these are our representatives. They determine them socially for us, because that is their job.
ReplyDeleteI think that principles and happiness are socially determined and are especially very interdependent on each other. We are a product of the environment that we as society have created for ourselves using principles and rules, and our happiness inevitably stems from how we go about interacting with this environment. If we like the principles that society has created for us in life in general and also within specific situations, then we are going to be relatively happy and if we don't, then we won't be happy. I think that consequently, we often use virtues in order to change things about the principles of society that don't make us happy (for example, solidarity) Although something like solidarity can obviously transform society in tremendous ways, I think that it usually stems from a personal struggle; the person who partakes in this transformation does it because of their own belief. Their own belief is something that is individual to them at a personal level, and therefore, I think that virtues are individually determined.
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