Understanding Freedom and Moral Choices in Life
Understanding Freedom and Moral Choices
To be free is to be able to choose. Sometimes we think of utility, of the pleasant, of good and wrong. We are making moral choices. Moral choices refer to the way we guide our lives and live with others. They refer to moral values such as dignity, justice, and solidarity. Sometimes we experience the value clearly, sometimes the counter-value, that is to say, the negative or harmful.
What Does it Mean to Be Free?
Freedom has a double meaning:
- External Freedom: On the one hand, it means the lack of external coercion (slaves, ill people). Because humans are not born free, we can understand our life as a process to achieve more freedom. This includes fighting against tyrannies for equality and fair laws, and helping weak people against disabling diseases.
- Internal Freedom: On the other hand, to be free means the lack of internal coercion (fear, ignorance). Improving individual autonomy through education is a key aspect of internal freedom.
Religions and philosophy agree that the way to happiness is important. It involves increasing knowledge and dominating passions. Passion is a strong emotion that takes over human conscience, obscures judgment, and drives us to act in a certain way.
Lived Values vs. Thought Values
Sometimes we cannot experience the value or the counter-value, so we must reflect. We can easily look for values we feel or live because they are motivating. But sometimes there are values that are not motivating but necessary, although they may be difficult or laborious. Sometimes we have to choose between two lived values. Sometimes we must choose between lived values or thought values. We always use reflection to justify the choice. A person is responsible if they can justify their choice well.
A Process of Liberation
We reach freedom through effort. Therefore, we should talk about a process of liberation rather than freedom:
- Moral Heteronomy: Following rules imposed by others.
- Moral Autonomy: Having your own rules to make decisions and behave according to your own convictions as adults.
Our Project of Life
Once liberated, we can use our freedom in different ways:
- To accept a chosen life project with responsibility.
- To decide and meet commitments.
- To link our freedom with people, values, and affective relations.
- To collaborate with the liberation of all human beings, helping to eliminate major obstacles opposing freedom.
Choosing Our Personality
Personality is the way a person thinks, feels, and behaves. Character refers to the personal qualities we acquire throughout our childhood. Good qualities are virtues, and wrong qualities are defects. Generally speaking, some qualities have been promoted or admired by all cultures, such as prudence, justice, courage, and temperance.
Identity
Identity is the feeling of being part of a group. Through it, we incorporate into our personality many social ideas that may be good or wrong. Because everybody is part of several groups, we have overlapping identities. Human identity is more important than others.