U14 What Makes a Humane Society

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U1-4 What Makes a Humane Society?

• 1 How religious beliefs affect modern societies,
  e.g. secular systems of government, religion and
  government?
• 2 Issues of human rights and responsibilities
  and their influence on modern societies?

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A Society Might Be In-Humane
Jews walking to the Gas Chamber
So, What Makes a Humane Society?
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What Makes a Humane Society?

• Humane means
• Marked by sympathy, compassion or concern for
  other humans and/or animals
• A humane society
• Acts in human-like ways
• Regards human welfare
• Especially the weakest and most vulnerable but

• Problematic, e.g. abortion
• Protect rights of unborn?
• Protect rights of woman?

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What Makes a Humane Society?

• Historically, many societies based their ethics
  on religious values
• In the Modern Age, many favour secular
  alternatives
• but the Enlightenment (Age of Reason) has failed
  to provide a uniting vision
• Democracy or Economic Rights? Freedom to exploit?
  
• Post-Modernists retreat from -
  Truth
• - uncertainty about God ? Good ? Justice ? Truth
• - disinterest

• How will you answer? Your choices shapes what
  society becomes

?
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Anthropology Simple Societies Shared Values

• Anthropologists say people in tribal societies
  usually share similar wealth, roles and values
• Tribal people can be good or bad
• But they have less choice about ethics

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Complex Societies Varied Values
More choice about ethics different views about
what makes a humane society
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Sociology Values Reflect Group Needs

• berserkr (Old Norse) "wild warrior or champion."

• Sociologists say societys needs create our
  values
• Vikings valued wild berserker warriors like
  Thor
• But West Bridgford School would find berserker
  behaviour troublesome

• Berserkers became frenzied in battle, howling
  like animals, foaming at the mouth, and biting
  the edges of their iron shields.

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Values Might Also Reflect Individual Choices
Its Up To Us!

• Values are what we consider important - what
  matters to us
• The ideals accepted by individuals or groups

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Our Values and Choices Shape Us

• Human beings have many needs
• But actualising / realising our values is
  important

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History Origins of Western Values 1
Ancient Greece

• Historians say Western ways of thinking began in
  Ancient Athens
• These were copied by the Romans and spread over
  Europe by the Roman Empire

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History Origins of Western Values 2
Christianity

• Historically, the Ethical Base for Society Came
  From Religion
• God could be the ultimate source of all Goodness
• But, Is God real?
• And, How do we know what God wants?
• What about the treatment of minorities?

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Christianity Influenced Western Values

• Christianity has been the major influence on
  Western values
• Despite growing secularisation, the influence of
  Christian values is still evident today in
  Western societies and individuals
• E.g. Names

Yes, its a cross!
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What if Islam had shaped Europe?

• Charles the Hammer stopped the northward spread
  of Islam into Europe in 732, Battle of Tours
• Some historians say he stopped Islam becoming
  Europes religion

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Christianity and Western Values

• Christianity influenced European values - God,
  Jesus, Bible, Heaven
• Christianity spread from Europe into the
  Americas, Africa and Australia
• Christianity helped shape Western values

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Page 2 Human Rights and Responsibilities
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Secularism e.g. Christmas Continues, But Without
the Religious Meaning
Christmas continues, but secular UK no longer
celebrates the Birth of Jesus New Christmas
traditions
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Rise of Free Thinking - Secularism

• Medieval Christendom Church and State built
  around allegiance to Christianity, centred on
  Rome (Roman Catholic Church) punish heretics
• Reformation Protestants reformed the Church
  broke up Christendoms unity, allowing
• Enlightenment Free thinking in religion
  encouraged free thinking without religion
  Descartes, I think, therefore I am rise of
  rationalism guided by the light of reason
• Rise of Science knowledge by empirical method

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Seeking a New Basis for Ethics 1 Thomas
Hobbess Social Contract

• Hobbes claimed without society, life would be
  nasty, brutish and short
• Natural greed for power led to anarchy and war of
  all against all
• So agree social contract out of self-interest

1588-1679
Leviathan (1651)
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Ethics Based on Social Contract

• Societys ethics based on the Social Contract
• Good is whatever society says
• You get the benefits of society if you give up
  total freedom

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2 Kant Do the Right Thing

• Kants Belief ethics is about doing your duty.
• Use reason to identify your duty
• Kant Do what any rational agent should do

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Kant Deontological Ethics (Duty-Based)

• Kants Categorical Imperatives
• Universalisability can your behaviour be a rule
  for everyone (the same for everyone)?
• Treat People as an End in Themselves dont use
  people

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3 Utilitarianism

• Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)
• wanted usefulness to be our main value do
  whatever produced the greatest happiness for the
  greatest number (GHP)
• Equal rights for everyone, including women, and
  the abolition of slavery
• Rich people should not count more than others

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Good Greatest Happiness Principle

• Do whatever is best for the most people
• BUT
• What about minorities?

Jeremy Benthams Utilitarianism
Winners
Losers
Ethnic Cleansing
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4 Economics Marxs Revolution for a Humane
Society

• Karl Marx (1818-1883) said, What society is like
  depends on economics
• The Bosses (Bourgeois) use their power to
  establish the society that favours them
• Proletarians learn a false consciousness - a
  false understanding that prevents their class
  struggle for change

For Marx a humane society ends exploitation of
the workers people no longer feel alienation
goods are shared by need not greed
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Who Decides What Makes a Society Humane?

• Hobbes What society says
• Utilitarians What benefits the majority
• Marx what benefits the powerful

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5 Politics Making a Humane Society

• Interest groups combine to promote their concerns
• E.g. Liberal, Conservative or Labour values

Nick Clegg
David Cameron
Gordon Brown
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What Makes a Humane Society?
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Humane Values The Big Question

• Do we invent values?
• Are values nothing more than just our own
  preferences?

• Do we find values?
• Are there some true values?

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Is There an Absolute Standard?

• As far as Moral Relativists are concerned
• Right and wrong are not absolute
• Just reflects socially accepted attitudes at a
  particular time/place

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Seeking an Absolute Standard?

• Religious Yes God!
• Many secularists good is whatever we think
  society? or individual?
• Nietzsche will to power replaces slave
  mentality
• Nazi activity was legal crimes against humanity
• Is Goodness a discovery or human invention?
• Problem if society attacks its own citizens

Is goodness just My preference is
different?
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Humane Society Human Rights

• One basic assumption of many modern societies is
  treat everyone equally
• The UN Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 suggests
  a set of rights for all people, no matter where
  they live
• The European Convention on Human Rights, 1950
  designed to protect human rights and freedoms

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A Modernism Valued Technology

• Modernism optimistic belief in Progress
• that science and human reason would fill
  remaining gaps in knowledge,
• find out everything, uncover the fundamental
  truth underpinning 'reality
• and build utopia

• If science and technology were reshaping the
  world
• In time we would reach Utopia

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Modernism in Crisis

• Modern technology also brought mass killing and
  destruction
• Disillusionment

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B Disillusionment with Modernism

• Disillusionment
• WWI Trenches
• WW2 Holocaust
• Environmental catastrophe
• Loss of Community
• Alienation
• Spiritual Emptiness

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C Post-Modernism

• Loss of Hope
• loss of trust in Reason
• no longer searching for Truth, God, nor Good
• Image is everything
• Values Style (whatever you decide)
• Confusing? Liberating! It does not matter - just
  choose!

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Post-Modernism

• Post-Modernism incredulity towards
  meta-narrative rejection of all grand theories
  loss of the search for Truth

• Excessive scepticism can undermine moral responses

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What Makes a Humane Society?
You do! You and Your Choices, Decisions and
Commitments