1st Unitarian Church of Alton, Illinois

1 October 2000

ON BEING A GOOD PERSON

Ronald J. Glossop

I. Introduction:

A. There may be some difference of opinion about whether today's

topic "On Being a Good Person" is a religious issue or simply an ethical

one.

B. In most religions there is a tension between the mystical

aspect and the ethical aspect, between the spiritual and meditative on the

one hand and the moral and action-oriented on the other.

C. This tension also exists in the Judaeo-Christian tradition, but

there is no doubt that in this tradition the moral and action-oriented has

been predominant. God commands the faithful to follow the moral law. As

the prophet Micah put it,"What does the Eternal ask from you but to be

just

and kind. . . ."

D. This issue of being a good person is of course not confined to

traditional religion. One can be committed to living a moral life without

any reference to God or the supernatural. Socrates, in his final farewell

to the citizens of Athens, had but one favor to ask: "Discipline my sons,

gentlemen, when they grow up; give them this same pain I have given you if

you think they have a concern for money or anything else instead of

virtue."

E. Today I want to review in a very general way the views of four

important philosophers on this issue of what it means to be a good a

person:

1. Aristotle representing the classical Greek tradition

2. Immanuel Kant representing the Judaeo-Protestant Christian

tradition

3. David Hume representing the humanistic European Enlightenment

tradition

4. John Dewey representing the American pragmatic naturalistic

tradition

II. Aristotle (lived in Athens during 4th century BCE: 384-322 BCE)

A. What is the function or built-in task of a human being? A

human being is an animal distinguished by having a capacity to reason.

Therefore a good human being must be one who reasons well (just as a good

teacher is one who teaches well and a good knife is one which cuts well

and

a good watch is one that tells time well).

B. Reason does two different kinds of things, so there are two

kinds of excellence.

1. Theoretical reason figures out what is true and false; it

understands the way the world is and why it is as it is. People with this

kind of capability will be good philosophers and scientists. Theoretical

reason is the basis of intellectual virtue (intellectual excellence).

2. Practical reason figures out what is good both for myself as an

individual and for my community as a whole. People with this kind of

capability will be good counselors and political leaders. Practical

reason

is the basis of moral virtue (moral excellence).

a. In a general way, moral excellence is a mean between two

extremes, both of which are vices. For example, courage is a mean between

fool-hardiness & cowardliness while liberality is a mean between

prodigality & niggardliness.

b. But the proper mean is relative to the person

and situation: To be liberal is to give away the right amount to the

right

beneficiary in the right way at the right time.

C. A good person is one who displays both intellectual and moral

virtue, who lives an excellent human life, who achieves happiness in the

sense of a human life which could not be better. Of course, there will

always be shortcomings, but the aim of life should be to minimize them.

D. Life is something like a card game; you just play the best game

you can with the cards you have been dealt. Luck plays a part, but in the

long run virtue should prevail.

II. Immanuel Kant (lived in Prussia in the 18th century: 1724-1804)

A. A good person is one who has a good will, who has the right

intentions (whether these good intentions are realized or not, something

which basically out of our control).

B. A good will aims to do its duty as prescribed by the universal

moral law.

C. The universal moral law can be known by reason independently of any

particular experience. Morality is not contingent on what you have been

taught or when you live or where you live. It is the same for all persons

at all times and all places.

D. The categorical imperative: Act in such a way that you could will

that anyone in that situation would do the same (regardless of your own

position in that situation).

E. A good person is guided by reason and duty, and must beware of

getting tempted by feelings and emotions into doing something that later

will be regretted.

F. People who follow their reason (the God-like part of their being)

rather than their animal inclinations are worthy of a heavenly eternal

existence, but being motivated by a desire for heaven rather than doing

one's duty undermines one's moral nature.

III. David Hume (lived in Scotland in 18th century: 1711-1776 [a few

years before Kant])

A. A good person is one who is admired and respected by others, who

has

virtues which arouse the approbation of others. ("I would like to be like

that.")

B. Virtues, the qualities which arouse admiration or approbation, are

those qualities of character which are useful or agreeable (pleasant) to

that person or to others. For example, being industrious is useful to

oneself and to others. Being witty is pleasant to others. Being

unflappable is agreeable to oneself and to others. Being open-minded is

agreeable to others and useful to oneself. Having a good memory is useful

to oneself.

C. Benjamin Franklin tried to improve himself by making a list of

virtues he wanted to develop and vices he wanted to avoid and then

checking

on himself regularly to see how he was doing. The virtue of "humility"

gave him difficulty, since the very act of saying that he was succeeding

in

developing humility seemed to show that he wasn't.

D. Note that the virtues can change from time to time & place to

place.

For example, having a good memory was much more useful in ancient times

before writing was common. Chastity is much more useful & agreeable in

some societies than others and generally has been more important for women

than for men.

E. A good person is one who is approved by others but also by oneself,

but because of empathy it is very difficult to have a high opinion of

yourself when others don't. Nevertheless, the ultimate criterion for

being

a good person is self-respect.

IV. John Dewey (lived in New England and midwestern United States:

1859-1952)

A. Dewey takes a post-Darwinian view based on Aristotle: What makes

humans superior to other animals? They use intelligence to solve

problems.

Therefore, a good person is an intelligent problem-solver not just for

self but also for the community.

B. The problems confronting humanity are constantly changing and vary

from time to time and place to place. Good people can adapt to the

changes; they can figure out what must be done to solve their current and

future problems.

C. The pragmatic viewpoint: True ideas are those which can be relied

on when anticipating what will happen. Good ideas are those which help

solve the problems of that time and place.

D. Good people do not get trapped by impulsive or habitual ways of

acting but apply intelligence to dealing with the problems of the moment &

the future.

V. These are the ideas of four philosophers which I regard as

particularly

helpful as we deal with the issue of what is a good person. I hope that

you will agree with me that each one has something to contribute as we try

to answer this question for ourselves.