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Where do you believe morals originate?

I believe moral should be based upon common sense. That which you know is clearly right and wrong, and making choices based upon those factors. Unfortunately, based upon how you are reared as a child develops this, especially depending upon your parents, their background, and beliefs so the range can be far, and wild

Generally moral standards are set by what a society will allow. Very often it is attached to religious belief systems but as we all know there are those that step outside of societal ideas. Some of course are connected to family but most I think after having four children pertain to the peers. What your friends believe and are doing usually affect moral values a great deal in my opinion. I haven't read any studies.

morals are common sense

It's something deep in our core. To feel empathy and therefore understand how we ourselves wish to be treated. As mentioned, it is basic common sense. It can vary of course, as some people on mass are equally capable of both cruellty and of compassion. Humanity has the capasity for destrucion and creativity, but though the harshest of situatios, sparks of light sometimes apear; a flickerind spark within the dust.

Morals are based on agreements between people, sometimes they use a religious factor to establish them, creating taboo's in the name of a god.

Basic morals should assist in keeping order in society, but at present many are still use to control and condemn others, because of the religious background they come from.

Morals van change from era to era, and as such it's rather pointless to base them on religious ideas which are seen as timeless, or handed direct from god.

I know I sound like a Darwin fanatic all the time, but I believe morals are found in a Darwinian sense.

Morals are in a sense altruistic, but not completely so. Why are we good? We hope that being good to other people will in turn get them to be good to us.

But raisings and environment have a huge impact on what is perceived as "right" and "wrong".

WOw....My friend who is 45, got a girl with a crush in Him, She is 25, well, He doesn't sleep with her because he said he got Morals. I told him, dude, You need to wake up and smell the coffee, Morals do not exist, what exist are norms, created by a society to control and influence our thinking and emotion. Am I wrong...Hell No!!!!

Morals are as individual as the person you are talking to at the time, there is no one definitive set of morals and common sense does not cover everything 50 years ago most everyone even the gays would've said gay people were sick and needed help now we no longer say they are suffering from a mental disease, 100 years ago "common sense" said that even though slavery was immoral, black people were still inferior. common sense changes along with society the changes are slow and subtle and sometimes happen all at once or in short bursts, a societies culture, religious influences, and government as well as their history all influence their accepted moral code,

Most of our morals have faded from existance most of society and the media has corrupted people so the common sense has been deteriorated in a majority of peoples heads so they tend to think that it is okay and that they could careless about reasoning in situations from right and wrong.

Morals and norms must change in order to serve people better. In the US we are way behind in what should be norms.Conservative religious elements are destroying personal freedoms in this country and need to be radically changed otherwise we will stagnate and never progress

True, but at this rate that might not change if people do not open their eyes.

I think morals aren't really governed by traditions we grew up with, it's more what was passed on. We all interpret tradition differently and morals the same way.
If someone were to grow up in the wild without other human contact, they'd have much different morals, in comparison to someone that's grown up in a upper-class society.

I think it's how we've grown up and how we perceive ourselves and the world around us that affect our morals.

but again, its always changing there is no single set of morals that is the be all and end all of moral codes.

Very little of this world people have morals its a shame really.

Just because people don't have morals that are the same as yours doesn't mean they don't have any.
They're just different.

I think everyone has morals - difference is, others don't know them.

I think peoples ideas of what is and what isn't moral is different from one person to the next so basing it on common sense is a waste of time. Especially sense common sense isn't so common, lol. Society is very good at changing moral ideas and what is considered acceptable behavior over time, so nothing is completley writtin in stone. I think its more of an agreement between people for that time era.

Morals are ambiguous at best, so to are the factors that determine morals. However common sense is a common denominator.

Human being are thinkers by nature. This displays it's self in our desire to explore, grow, and dominate. There is the old saying "why did you climb the mountain" and the answer is always "because it was there".
But we are also pack animals and so when we reach the top of the mountain we reflect on what we have achieved and have a desire to share in that with our kinship. How we share and what others think of it isn't always the same and thus has caused conflict. This process is the reason we think about how our future of past actions will effect others in our quest to achieve. The standard of how we treat each other... AKA Morals.

Lets keep up to date.
Last night the BBc aired a documentary which is set to shake the world we live in.
In it the explain how a thousand labs are now doing experiments testing toddlers to adults for signs of immoral behavior "evil" if you like.
They discovered we have an in built moral code which when broken leads to psychological problems and "evil" acts. A study of soldiers shows once they have killed they often lose their sense of morality and end up killing friends and family around them.
They also discovered psychopaths have different brain structures with the frontal cortex almost switched off. This is caused by an inherited gene the MAOA gene which can remain switched off. The trigger seems to be a violent up-bringing and or abuse, so a person carrying the gene may never murder anyone.
A study of top CEO's and company directors showed this gene is four times more common among this group. Those with this warrior gene tend to be able to switch off emotion, are very charismatic and deceitful. Most interestingly, their performance as company bosses was also seen to be rather poor, they manage to scam and lie to get to the top.
Put simply, they have discovered evil behavior is about your genes, and certain hormone levels, testosterone being a key player. This genetic problem was successfully used as a defence to murder in a Tenesee court last year. The jury accepted diminished responsibility and he was not sentenced to death after hacking up his wife and friend.

Can Morals be like beauty, that only exist in the eyes of the beholder...just a though.

In regards to the above, beauty is beheld differently for each person, and morals are the same. So in the way that morals may seem to fit one person, they can be uncivilised to another.

morals vary from culture to culture but they are never wrong i wonder why because a lot of my society's morals, for me is not right but people are unmindful of 'em or is it just because i have my own morals that are most of the times in contrast with the norms of the society im part of...

Golgotha i believe that at least for here in the States it should be sorely based in the foundations of comme sence.

I know people who think the law should be based upon the so called ten commandments and that people should be punished according to their dictates. That means I could be put to death for watching football on sunday because I didn't go to their church

I believe yo was always common sence later made into laws although laws cannot mandate common sence. morals is never something you can legislate

Morals are an individual's belief system of what is right or wrong. This may be learned from society or from one's parents. Everyone has morals-- they just might not be the same as someone else's!

I agree. I know that my morals were instilled in me since I can remember. I'm very satisfied with the morals my parents taught me. They made me a good, honest person with respect and manors.I treat people the way I want to be treated and firmly believe that is the way you should live your life.

Morals should originate in the home, parents...at least they used to..... teach common sense, a certain amount of etiquette and the difference between right and wrong. If one was raised this way, your gut could be trusted to make the right decisions in life.

Unfortunately , morals have been twisted and have dramatically changed in today's society so much so that there is no real structure for the youth to follow any longer.
Anything pretty much goes. So much confusion.

The problem is though that there is plenty of parents that are new to parent-hood that could careless about their children and the ways of teaching them right from wrong, it is really sad for those children and very unfortunate.

NOVA had a pretty insightful program pretaining to this topic to a degree ...




http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/how-does-the-brain-work.html

I think one of the problems with so called modern morality is that it favours men over women.

No, the problem is idiots in high places showing kids Jersey Shore and the Kardashians...Grrr...

(at least South Park helps a bit)

A very interesting topic. I found a philosophy forum on which the same topic was raised, and there are many intriguing points made there.

http://forums.philosophyforums.com/threads/where-do-morals-originate-38572.html

Within it, it was pointed out that primates would allow themselves to go hungry in order to avoid an electric shock being given another (even unrelated) primate.

That is food for thought right there. Perhaps morals are not necessarly unique to humankind.

Where do you believe morals originate?


"Human beings, all over the earth,
have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way,
and cannot really get rid of it."
- C. S. Lewis


"The most important human endeavor
is the striving for morality in our actions.
Our inner balance, and even our very existence depends on it.
Only morality in our actions
can give beauty and dignity to our lives."
- Albert Einstein


And to bring balance into it:


"Similar to the concepts of virtue and vice,
[justice and injustice] are purely local and geographical;
that which is vicious in Paris turns up, as we know,
a virtue in Peking, and it is quite the same thing here;
that which is just in Isfahan
they call unjust in Copenhagen.
Amidst these manifold variations
do we discover anything constant?"
- Marquis de Sade




Just posting these thoughts from those who have made a mark in history.

I'll post my own if this thread is still active today.

I would hope that humanity would come to a universal code of morality but that will not happen as I see it

Morals is the ability to chose between doing something wrong or right. We all have morals that are placed on us just for being alive and we choose wether we follow them or not. No matter who you are no one can be an Angel and follow all the rules and guidelines set for us, we choose which are the ones we wanna follow. This is the bases for morals.

a set of laws/guideline that are placed on us which we choose to follow or not.

Morals????? WTH are morals? I prefer "situational ethics" Much more flexible and fun.

ciao,
vladstick

Situational ethics can get you in sticky situations though

what i know about morality is that i lack it, why concern yourself with right and wrong when you could just do anything you want? free will is there for a reason....to be used, people shouldn't let society and their laws restrict them.

Morals are puppet strings of the masses by the elite. The morals in a specific culture are controled by belief of the elite, not whether it is right or wrong.

morality is a part of right or wrong(good or bad) but mostly its only right or wrong in a society type (what the society believes is right or wrong) and as you said a belief in the elite, a belief in the government or religious laws, if they say something is immoral then it "must" be immoral...its sad and pathetic but at least there are still chaotic anarchists out there try to change the world back to a more primal age.

That which you call your soul or spirit is your consciousness, and that which you call 'free will' is your mind's freedom to think or not, the only will you have, your only freedom, the choice that controls all the choices you make and determines your life and your character...thence your morality.

If free will is the the freedom to think then how does it control your choices aren't you controlling your choices? Hence the freedom to think or not.

We are always equipped with reasoning to examine how we act upon free will. Reasoning is what should be controlling.

Even then its your reasoning so your still controlling they are reasoning is merely a helper.

My upbringing taught me the morals that are proper. I have lot of morals! ;)~

i find morals and laws to be an obstacle to true freedom, all lifeforms should be able to do what they want when they want and how. but the corrupt and impure government seek to control the world and its people with law and order etc they are also hypocrites as they are constantly breaking the laws that they force upon humanity.

I think morals originate within yourself.

Come on... Lets face the truth, no matter how much parents tell us "Don't wear that, don't do this" we go ahead and do it anyway! Right?

Society allows almost anything now-a-days. =/ Which doesn't really help for the future generation.

Now it's all up to individuals to decide on what's right.

I think American Societe is too restrictive. I don't need politicians trying to legislate morality

That's why I'm a happy Pagan and deistic Satanist. I don';t have to live under that type of fear.

I believe morals develop from the culture that surrounds the individual. Society shapes it's own morality. In the end, an individual will have guidelines, but it is up to him or her to maintain those morals.

Are you people serious??

It's funny to listen to those who openly state that ethics and morals are unimportant because these are the same folks who have lived their whole lives with freedoms and security that were provided to them.
The only reason you can debate morality and freedom of your choices is because you have them already!! They were handed down to you without any sort of a struggle on your part.

The fall of the Roman Empire meant a vacuum of power and thus the inability to enforce a basic code of laws and ethics.
We call this post period "The Dark Ages"!!
What did ya think... that it's called that because it was cloudy outside??


These fine folks don't remember a time when any Ranking soldier of the crown could rape your wife at his leisure just because you were born in his domain. Refusal meant death for her and your young followed by slavery for you.
You don't remember all the periods in time when voicing your opinion especially to the church led to life long imprisonment, in a real dungeon... and that was if you were lucky. Yeah some people call that little period the inquisition. You know - Iron maidens, boiling oil, being hanging backward from your arms until you die, being burned at the stake, disemboweled... all for you beliefs.
You don't remember a time when house holds ate, slept, and worked in shifts so that some one was always awake. The fear of barbarians, and highway men raiding your home, murdering your family, and looting all the things you've worked your whole life for was a regular aspect of life.
See they simply don't remember a point in time when people actually did do what they wanted, when ever they wanted to do it.
It is the very reason people started banding together and forming societies with laws in the first place!!

Don't kid yourselves these are not the type of conditions for which you ever want to find yourself living in.

Trust me you want civility and you want morality.

Morals and ethics have always been learned behaviours, in any case

Morals are a learned response through social interaction.

morality is sometimes self destruction, morality is half in a person which is the conscience, and the other half is society and culture (the laws) the latter is the worst as its a breach of free will, humans are humans and no one human should bow to another, if the human does then its a weak pathetic creature afraid of grabbing its own destiny.

morality as a conscience is the natural kind, a person whether they were raised that way or not (it doesn't make that much of a difference) will know what is in their heart and what they perceive as right or wrong. good and evil is natural and those who murder,rape and pillage are not outsiders, not freaks, they are natural behaviours, good humans are not normal humans and evil humans are not freaks that need locking up. that is just society and the corrupt system forcing their laws into people's mind. (notice how humans and the government concept of moral behaviour changes in society to adapt) when they say that is right or wrong then humans believe it instead of their natural instinct
nature designs species with different behaviours, condemning one group just because it doesn't fit in is stupid, pathetic and corrupt.

if people don't want to be killed or raped, then they should fight back..to the death if need be, its what all animals are supposed to do, either that or run away, but imposing law and order, and locking them up is wrong in my point of view. every species on this pathetic planet should do as they please without crybabies calling the law, most animals kill their own species for many reasons or even for none, doesn't mean it should be put away like a disease, it means the other should have fought harder, been smarter or ran faster.

Morality and blind obedience are different.

One can have a set of morals that tells them that it is perfectly plausible to kill, maim, rape and torture.

While another may believe that it is only okay to do these things under certain circumstances..and yet another may feel it is not alright to do them at all.

Most folks get offended when they see their version of morality being defied, especially if it is in action to themselves or those they depend on. They may also take offense to seeing others have that "violation of morality" visited upon them..simply because it is stands as a possible threat to themselves and their well-being.

Destroy the threat before it becomes one mentality.

It can also be said, that as much as folks should protect themselves from harm etc that those who feel that they are trapped within societal "moral" code should fight back; thus proving they themselves are not the weak ones.

Exactly. Society is trying to impose law and order on the world and washing away the individuals, Each tribes(and individual) or group's unique culture, morality and hierarchy gets replaced with the larger one, now don't get me wrong animals do fight for territory but they don't impose laws, they just occupy it. Humans should listen to their heart whether it is good or evil and not the law, They should let their conscience, Intuition and inner morality (or lack of) guide them, not societies rules.

The strong find their own destiny and the weak only follow.

Maleficus,

So what your saying is that animals within the animal kingdom who live in packs (like Lions, Gorillas, or wolves) don't have their own set of laws that the group follows for the benifit of the group as a whole... that those rules are not handed down by a small few or one indivdual within that social group??
And that this leader when challanged would not use force to show and maintain his dominance... thus inforcing that law??

to me morals are something you develop overtime, with the constant input of others like friends and family who claim they know whats best for you. Also it maybe what we see in society that adds to our morals

The Universal Moral Code includes five of the Ten Commandments

Honor your father and your mother.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

C. S. Lewis published a list of universal moral principles he called "Illustrations of the Tao or Natural Law" in the appendix of his book The Abolition of Man (1944).

But if we are to get a fully recognized aspect to the question, then we have to go further back into history, further back than C.S.Lewis, over 2000 years before the Christian Era about 2250 B.C.

The Code of Hammurabi is one of the oldest moral/legal codes known to historians. Hammurabi was King of Babylon about 2250 B.C. The Code of Hammurabi has been translated into 282 sections that set forth business, family, social, and political rules. The sections include penalties for false accusations, adultery, incest, assault, medical malpractice, shoddy workmanship, and negligence.

It is one of the most influential codifications of law in ancient history, the text provides a concrete example of the expanding influence of centralized government on the personal and professional lives of the general population.


The Code demonstrates the way the Babylonian state attempted to regulate morality in an effort to maintain social order. For instance, laws regulating adultery, incest, and marriage illustrate the extensive power that the centralized government was able to wield in Hammurabi’s time. By codifying, and subsequently enforcing, laws of morality, the government extended its power over the private lives of its population, as well as their economic relationships or religious beliefs.


Hmmm... does this sound familiar. You see people truthfully speaking we still live under the Code till this very day..It was adopted into our everyday lives when this country was settled and our society was born. It is established in every court system in the world and most societies age governed by it.

severus, i already mentioned that some animals have some order and hierarchy of sorts such as wolf packs etc. but there is still freedom in it and if animals fight for dominance then its a more or less a fair fight, in human law and order, its oppressive and one can't truly fight back as one would be out-gunned, out-manned and likely with no resources, if humans were in the dark ages again, then it would be fairer .no tech, no guns.

that is not say humans must give up, they should keep trying in anyway they can...technology and money doesn't mean indestructibility.

I have to agree somewhat with that, in some degree. Human will manipulate things create lies, stir up hysteria, and hate in order to win.