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    What Is Moral Character

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    Kenberly Dingle
    The document discusses different perspectives on moral character. It defines moral character as involving virtues like integrity, courage, and honesty. Moral characters are stable dispositions that people can be held responsible for. Philosophically, Confucian traditions viewed moral development as stemming from four beginnings - compassion, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom - that shape a person's character if cultivated properly. The document contrasts the Western view of personality as innate versus the Confucian view of personality as an achieved state of moral excellence.

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    What Is Moral Character

    Uploaded by

    Kenberly Dingle
    40 views2 pages
    The document discusses different perspectives on moral character. It defines moral character as involving virtues like integrity, courage, and honesty. Moral characters are stable dispositions that people can be held responsible for. Philosophically, Confucian traditions viewed moral development as stemming from four beginnings - compassion, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom - that shape a person's character if cultivated properly. The document contrasts the Western view of personality as innate versus the Confucian view of personality as an achieved state of moral excellence.

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    What is Moral Character

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    The document discusses different perspectives on moral character. It defines moral character as involving virtues like integrity, courage, and honesty. Moral characters are stable dispositions that people can be held responsible for. Philosophically, Confucian traditions viewed moral development as stemming from four beginnings - compassion, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom - that shape a person's character if cultivated properly. The document contrasts the Western view of personality as innate versus the Confucian view of personality as an achieved state of moral excellence.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    40 views2 pages

    What Is Moral Character

    Uploaded by

    Kenberly Dingle
    The document discusses different perspectives on moral character. It defines moral character as involving virtues like integrity, courage, and honesty. Moral characters are stable dispositions that people can be held responsible for. Philosophically, Confucian traditions viewed moral development as stemming from four beginnings - compassion, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom - that shape a person's character if cultivated properly. The document contrasts the Western view of personality as innate versus the Confucian view of personality as an achieved state of moral excellence.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
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    What is Moral Character?

    First let us take the most basic definition of the terms moral, character,and moral character.
    Moral is “concerned with the principles of right and wrong behavior or the goodness and
    badness of the human character" (Merriam-Webster 2017). Character is defined as “the mental
    and moral qualities distinct to an individual" (Merriam-Webster2017). But in Philosophy, the term
    character usually denotes to the moral dimension of a person (Timpe, 2007). Moral character
    refers to the “existence (or lack of) virtues such as integrity, courage, fortitude, honest, and
    loyalty". (Merriam-Webster©2017)

    Moral Character as Disposition

    Moral characters are those dispositions or the tendency to act or think in a particular way for
    which a person can be held morally responsible.Thus,moral character traits are rational,
    informed,stable and reliable dispositions (Internet Encyclopedia Of Philosophy,@2017).

    Philosophical Views on Moral Character

    What do the great ancient minds think about moral character? Let us look at the viewpoints of
    Eastern and Western thinkers.

    Confucian Traditions

    The philosophy of moral development is rooted in ancient views. For Confucian traditions moral
    development was attributed to "four beginnings” of the human personality (Internet
    Encyclopedia of Philosophy,©2017).These "four beginnings" were considered as seeds of
    human personality that will naturally unfold to become human activities. Take note though, that
    contrary to Western understanding of personality as a given human condition; personality in
    Confucian perception meant-“an achieved state of moral excellence” (Ammes, 1997; Klemme,
    WEB).

    Thus, in this concept, every person is born with four beginnings.However,each of these do not
    yet capture the concept of self. However,when the four beginnings are put together, it may then
    be perceived in Western understanding as the “pre-self“or “potential self“(Klemme, WEB).

    The four beginnings in Confucian traditions are:

    1. The heart of compassion, which leads to Jen.


    2. The heart of righteousness, which leads to Yi.
    3. The heart of propriety, which leads to Li.
    4. The heart of wisdom, which leads to Zhi.
    Jen means goodwill, sympathy towards others, and generosity. Yi means righteousness and the
    respect of duty, that is, respect your position as guardian towards nature and humanity. Li deals
    with outward behavior such as etiquette,customs, and rituals. Zhi means wisdom, and this
    wisdom is a product of practicing Jen,Yi, and Li in one's life (Liu, 2002).

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