Human Action and Morality
Personality and Moral Action
Moral Agency and Human Identity
Moral action is a type of action unique to human beings. We each possess a unique identity, developed throughout our lives. This identity is what we typically refer to as character (ethos) or personality.
Moral action occurs when individuals act freely and responsibly. This exercise of freedom and responsibility is carried out through human intellect and will.
Identity is a primary, essential characteristic that distinguishes each of us as unique and unrepeatable individuals. This inherent character results in diverse natures.
Key Features of Moral Action
Understanding moral action resides in recognizing these key features:
Intentionality: Moral action is intentional and voluntary, stemming from sound judgment.
Purpose: It has a defined purpose and plan.
Motivation: It responds to specific motivations.
Creativity and Ingenuity: These are employed in planning the steps of action.
Attribution: Personality is attributable to a singular, concrete individual.
The Problem of Freedom
An act is considered free when it is not imposed by something or someone external to the acting agent.
Freedom is the capacity to make self-determined choices and plans without external constraints.
Erich Fromm situates the problem of freedom within the historical development of humankind, both as a species and as individuals.
Types of Freedom
Extrinsic Freedom (External Freedom)
Also known as freedom of action or freedom of exercise, extrinsic freedom is the absence of coercion or pressure from external forces. This allows the individual to act without being completely compelled to behave in a certain way or to refrain from a specific action. There are different interpretations of this type of freedom:
Physical and Biological: For example, a body falls freely because it encounters no impediment.
Political and Social: This falls within the realm of political and social ethics. The origins of political freedoms lie in the liberal revolutions of the 19th century, while social freedoms arose from overcoming social struggles of the 19th and 20th centuries (e.g., freedom of thought, freedom of movement).
Intrinsic Freedom (Internal Freedom)
Also known as freedom of choice, freedom of self-determination, or free will, intrinsic freedom describes an individual’s ability to shape their own life, pursue personal goals and motivations, and assume responsibility for their choices. This freedom encompasses:
Freedom of Exercise: The ability to act or not act.
Freedom of Specification: The ability to act in one way or another.
Moral Freedom: The ability to choose between good and bad, right and wrong.
These three characteristics, along with free will, imply that individuals assume responsibility for the purpose, execution, and outcome of their actions.
The Dialectic of Determinism and Indeterminism
Determinist theories deny the existence of free will. Indeterminist theories affirm freedom as a fundamental human characteristic, albeit with limitations. Some authors propose a dialectical synthesis of these two positions.
Determinism
Some authors deny human freedom, reducing it to mere appearance or social convention. This thesis is supported by natural, social, and philosophical foundations.
1. Natural Sciences Foundations
This perspective posits that humans are part of nature, subject to its deterministic laws. Two main types of determinism exist:
Mechanistic/Physical Determinism: While humans are complex, they are ultimately governed by physical or material laws (e.g., Democritus’ atomic theory, Laplace’s causal determinism, Newton’s scientism).
Biological/Physiological Determinism: Human behavior is determined by biological or physiological factors (e.g., Cesare Lombroso, Sigmund Freud).
2. Social Sciences Foundations
This perspective emphasizes the social dimension of human development as the primary influence on personality, attitudes, and behaviors. Two main groups exist:
Educational Determinism: B.F. Skinner and behaviorist psychologists argue that human behavior is a response to social stimuli that reinforce or discourage certain actions.
Sociological Determinism: Human action is constrained by social factors that impose limits and influence behavior (e.g., Emile Durkheim).
3. Philosophical Foundations
Rational Determinism: Authors like Arthur Schopenhauer argue that human choices are ultimately determined by rational processes.
Theological Determinism: Baruch Spinoza and Georg Hegel viewed freedom as a property of a transcendent being (God, nature, Absolute Idea), influencing human action.
Indeterminism
Indeterminism defends the radical freedom of human behavior, while acknowledging the presence of conditioning factors. Different traditions include:
Biblical Tradition: God created humans in his image, implying freedom. However, the fall from grace resulted in a loss of freedom, and salvation represents liberation.
Thomism: Thomas Aquinas argued that humans are free and rational, endowed with intellect and will. While the will is attracted to all good, only a transcendent good (God) can attract it in a special way.
Kantian Ethics: Immanuel Kant believed that humans are ethical beings capable of moral autonomy, requiring freedom as a necessary foundation.
Quantum Physics: Quantum mechanics, developed by Werner Heisenberg and Erwin Schrödinger, suggests that natural laws operate probabilistically, introducing indeterminacy.
Existentialism: This 20th-century philosophical movement (including Jean-Paul Sartre and Emmanuel Mounier) emphasizes human existence as defined by free choice and the creation of a life project.