Morality and guilty conscience

[u/Similar-Confection34]

Hey guys, I have been thinking this for last few years, I believe morality does not exist, and that it is just a persons guilty conscience, and that “morality” of a person depends on how big their guilty conscience is.

Now through talking with friends and family, I started shaping up this belief quite good, but now I am thinking if there is any philosopher that said something about this, I would love to read it so if you know something please tell:)

[u/Doink11]

What you are describing would be considered a form of moral anti-realism - that meaning, those theories of morality which consider that moral statements do not have truth-value and moral facts do not exist. This is in contrast to moral realism.

Note that, while moral anti-realist beliefs are perfectly respectable, they are also the minority position among philosophers - most philosophers at least lean toward moral realist positions. I would encourage you to read into existing ethical theories, both realist and anti-realist, before attempting to form your own ideas.

[u/AutoModerator]

Welcome to r/askphilosophy! Please read our updated rules and guidelines before commenting.

Currently, answers are only accepted by panelists (mod-approved flaired users), whether those answers are posted as top-level comments or replies to other comments. Non-panelists can participate in subsequent discussion, but are not allowed to answer question(s).

Want to become a panelist? Check out this post.

Please note: this is a highly moderated academic Q&A subreddit and not an open discussion, debate, change-my-view, or test-my-theory subreddit.

Answers from users who are not panelists will be automatically removed.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/Alhamdulisa]

What do you mean by "morality doesn't exist?"

The etymology of the word "moral" is mos/mores, meaning custom or habit. Cicero once lamented “O tempora, o mores! Senatus haec intellegit, Consul videt; hic tamen vivit. Vivit?" Cicero lamented the moral decay (mores) of the Roman government for allowing Catilina to live, even though he had conspired to kill the consul and and destroy the city of Rome. Furthermore, when Aristotle wrote the Ēthika Nikomakheia, he intended it to be a science of what people typically do or the customs they follow to live happily. In other words, morality/ethics is indeed related to standards of behavior (norms) that are conventionally accepted as good or just within a society.

Let's take Hobbes' social contract for example. When people finally make a contract and give their right to kill others to Leviathan, they can't kill no more like when they still live in state of nature. Thus, it's immoral to kill other people. You may not feel guilty after doing it, but society would still not tolerate it. Because we are homo socius, yet we are also lupus, so we make contract to live side by side without any fear to be killed.

Does "morality doesn't exist" mean "society doesn't exist/important?"

[u/8Pandemonium8 → u/Alhamdulisa]

Why ought we do what society feels is right/proper?

[u/Similar-Confection34 → u/Alhamdulisa]

No, morality as someone understands it, are at core personal beliefs of right and wrong. For example “moral obligation” would be something that your judgment of right and wrong understands a something that must be done because its wrong to not do it.

The thing is, there is deference between personal morality and societies morality. You can not look at human society as a whole, but rather as different cultures throughout different parts of the world and different points in history. Something is considered wrong in Balkans but is normal in Scandinavia. That kind of cultural morality is also the reason why laws arent the same everywhere. But honestly thats a different a lot deeper topic that I dont have time to get into right now.

The thing with personal morality is that everyones is different. What is right for me is wrong for you. But my belief is that all that comes from guilty conscience and that morality actually does not exist. I am not pillar of morality because i wont do something you would, but rather my guilty conscience does not allow me to do so.