Conatus: REVISED EDITION by Tom Wallace - HTML preview

C O N A T U S

degree, whether there is a general belief in absolute morality or not.

The purpose of the law, in simple terms, is that the individual and society be free to go about their lives in peace, provided they do not interfere with the freedom of others. (John Stuart Mill’s ‘do no harm’ principle.) Everyone is equal under the law. Everyone has the right to justice, simply as a result of existing. Just what freedom, equality, justice — and the Americans would add — the pursuit of happiness — amount to is quite another matter. Those are the underlying values, and as we’ve discussed above, there is an ongoing process of how values are translated into ethics, morality and law.

For the most part the law is only prohibitive — setting boundaries beyond which people must not stray. Examples of proscriptive legislation however might be — paying taxes and voting. The upshot is — we do not legislate for virtue. We do not oblige people to be forgiving, compassionate, generous, kind and loving. The most important commands of love God and love neighbour are replaced with do not kill. The prohibitive laws are really just consequences of the big two, but in a secular society they are seen as the whole law — the original link with love is forgotten. In a more general sense, the law does not try to legislate for some values that we nonetheless consider to be in some sense innate.

Should the law legislate with regard to personal ethics or should it always only refer to public morality? It is difficult to define where personal

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