Morality

Morality: conformity to the rules of right conduct; moral or virtuous conduct. (Dictionary.com, definition 1)

I went to Lunacon last weekend hoping to absorb some of the wisdom from the professional types and make new friends (I'm terrible at networking).  During a "New Writers" panel, Michael Ventrella (one of the panelists) made the comment, "The villain is the hero of their own story," which I've heard him (and others) say on other occasions.  This statement is generally met with thoughtful nods.  However, this time, there was a dissenting voice in the audience.  A gentleman behind me said something to the extent that Bernie Madoff could not possibly believe that about himself.  Now, we could debate all day about whether Bernie thinks he's a bad guy (I don't personally know the fella), but it got me to thinking about the roots of morality.  How does one know what is 'Right'?

    My entire life has been spent around people who are substantially different than I in one way or another.  Growing up in suburban New Jersey, we had all sorts of backgrounds and economic levels represented, most within a mile radius of my house.  We had a media mogul down the street and a family (my parents' friends) who had fled Liberia under the cover of darkness (their group having been ousted) to become a bus driver and a librarian in this new world.  One of the things I have always been exposed to is other people's points of view.  'Exposed' is the important word in that sentence, because I didn't always recognize it, but it was always there.  This experience has been an important part of my growth as a human being and an integral part of my aspirations as a writer.  It is through understanding the motivations of my characters that I hope to create honesty (no matter how fantastical) within my work.
    Right was defined in my youth as what I was taught in Church.  I grew up in a pretty liberal Protestant household (Hell was only in the subtext, we were focused on getting into Heaven).  My folks and I have our differences in the details, but the basics of human decency and respect seem to be agreed upon.  Growing up firmly in the middle class, I never really wanted for anything I needed and my parents didn't believe in using violence as a teaching technique.  You put all of those together and you get a pretty good picture of how I try to conduct myself on a day to day basis.  As an individual, I seem to be directed by the total of my experience.
    Like myself, many people have the grounding of their understanding of Right on religion.  If God says something is cool, then it is (we will ignore for the moment how much of European history hinges on attempts to circumvent this limit).  Most people are thoroughly entrenched in the Judeo-Christian ethics focused primarily on the Ten Commandments and The Golden Rule.  Ask most folks on the street and they'll tell you that it is wrong to kill other people, want their stuff, and sleep with their wife (though we often forget about honoring our parents, and so on).  The simple truth is that other cultures aren't so cut and dry on this.  Think about the long term impact of Confucian filial piety on the women of China.  Do a little research and you'll find that these "universal truths" aren't quite so universal and that what you view as cruel may be perfectly justified to someone else (as well as all their kin).  Religion has been used as a tool to advocate all kinds of (white I believe is) abominable behavior throughout history.
    The second primary influence on an individual's morality is the code of ethics imposed by their government.  Modern democratic countries create their laws with the stated intent of protecting the rights of the individuals who are citizens of that country.  Growing up in the USA, I firmly believed in my rights to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" (though being in "The Declaration of Independence," it's not a law).  Faith in the country of our birth is drilled into most of us right along with our parents' religion.  Freely flowing populations who have no allegiance to any specific country are generally frowned upon as untrustworthy (sorry Roma).  Here again though, we find that countries with different forms of government create radically different moral guidelines.  Czech friends tell me that in Communist Czechoslovakia, "If you don't steal from others, you are stealing from your family," was a common axiom.  Feudal societies may excuse any action as long as it was commanded by the lord of that particular vassal.  Additionally, the ethics that regulate our relationships with our fellow citizens have not always protected outsiders.  The rules of The Geneva Convention (1949) were designed particularly with this in mind.  People who are taught to 'trust the system' become molded by the system.
    The third primary influence forming one's "moral compass" is their community.  Hardest to define, this may be a complex of cultures and religions mingling value systems and economic factors.  These are the influences of friends and neighbors, the events of childhood.  It is these mitigating real life influences which seem to create the shades of grey in our otherwise black/white morality.  Growing up with some of my best friends being Jewish started me asking, "Are they all going to Hell?"  Others in a more homogeneous community might simply have their beliefs reinforced.  In these groups, the 'other' is often the most strongly affected, perhaps feeding the ego of the rich kid or fueling the rage of the poor one.  These circumstances of youth are usually what teach us which of the other ethical codes are flexible.   
    Some will argue that there is an inborn sense of Right that all humans are born knowing; that children have to be taught hate and avarice.  There may be some truth to that, but it's hard to design experiments to prove these ideas (see examples of such below).  It is possible that basic morality is a genetically encoded survival instinct.  We routinely create ethical systems of right and wrong which are beneficial to survival, like "it's a bad idea to kill people who will protect me," but this is not morality.  This is the foundation of a successful society.  It seems reasonable to believe that those who develop successful rules would survive to pass these impulses on.  However much inborn justice a baby has, it is quickly molded by the other factors surrounding it.
    While humans may be born with an innate sense of right and wrong, as societies become more complex, there is plenty of opportunity for divergent systems of Right to be equally successful.  The world is full of faiths, governments, and societies all trying to improve the lot of their adherents; each taking its own path to fulfillment.  What is Right for each individual springs from the confluence of these influences.  If there was a simple answer, Philosophy would have gotten bored with itself long ago.  As a wise sitcom once sang, "What might be right for you, may not be right for some." 

In summary: The villain is the hero of his own story.


Confucianism - http://www.ibiblio.org/chinesehistory/contents/02cul/c04s04.html
The Geneva Conventions - http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/publication/p0173.htm
Child Experiments - http://www.cbsnews.com/news/is-your-child-fair-when-no-one-is-watching/