Melvyn Bragg and guests delve into the complex nature of guilt, exploring its role in morality, psychology, and law. They discuss the distinction between shame and guilt, Kant's perspective on duty and morality, and Nietzsche's critique of Christian morality. The conversation also touches on the origins and impact of guilt, highlighting its deep roots in Christian ethics and its evolution in society.
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Quick takeaways
Shame focuses on appearance and hiding, while guilt drives atonement and emphasizes the victim of harm.
Guilt, beyond intended actions, reveals ethical markings even for involuntary deeds, delving into moral responsibility and fate.
Deep dives
Contrast Between Shame and Guilt Cultures
Shame and guilt are presented as two distinct ways in which individuals acknowledge their wrongdoings. Shame revolves around saving face and focuses on appearance in the eyes of others, leading to a desire to hide. In contrast, guilt involves an internal voice of criticism and self-criticism, driving individuals to atone for their wrongdoings and emphasizing the victim of the harm caused.
Evolution of Guilt in Christianity
In the classical world, the concept of guilt beyond intended actions is explored, as seen in stories like Oedipus. Guilt, distinct from shame, highlights the ethical markings on individuals even for involuntary deeds. Through examples like Oedipus, the discussion delves into the intricate relationship between fate, moral responsibility, and the ethical complexities of human actions.
Kant's Universal Moral Grounding
Kant's philosophical approach focuses on grounding morality in rationality, autonomy, and duty. He emphasizes a universal standard based on pure reason and internalizing moral motives driven by duty. Kant reconciles the cosmic and individual aspects of moral responsibility, defining guilt as appropriate only when actions are voluntary and guided by moral duty.
Freud's Psychological Perspective on Guilt
Freud delves into the internalization of moral values and the development of conscience. He attributes guilt to the internal voice of authority, often originating from early structures like the family. Freud's analysis portrays guilt as essential for social cohesion but warns of potential pathologies when internalized authority leads to excessive self-criticism and self-punishment.
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss morality by taking a long hard look at the idea of guilt. The 18th century politician and philosopher Edmund Burke was once moved to comment: “Guilt was never a rational thing; it distorts all the faculties of the human mind, it perverts them, it leaves a man no longer in the free use of his reason, it puts him into confusion.”Guilt is a legal category but also a psychological state and a moral idea. Over the centuries theologians, philosophers and psychologists have tried to determine how it relates to morality, reason and the workings of the mind? The answers seem to cut deeply into our understanding of what it is to be human.With Stephen Mulhall, Fellow and Tutor in Philosophy at New College, Oxford; Miranda Fricker, Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London; Oliver Davies, Professor of Christian Doctrine at King’s College London
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