Guilt: Difference between revisions
Created page with "'''Guilt''' or '''remorse''' is an emotion that occurs when a person feels that his behavior has fallen short of what his own ethical principles called for him to do (or not d..." |
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It is not possible for a person to cause another person to feel guilt, except by getting that person to both (1) accept a moral precept as valid and (2) believe that he has fallen short of that standard. This is a quite different matter from impelling a person to feel regret that does not involve a sense of guilt. A government can, for instance, punish a person for smoking cannabis and thereby, in some cases, impel him to feel regret for using the drug (or at least, for getting caught). However, the government cannot make him feel guilty without getting him to believe that what he did was wrong. | It is not possible for a person to cause another person to feel guilt, except by getting that person to both (1) accept a moral precept as valid and (2) believe that he has fallen short of that standard. This is a quite different matter from impelling a person to feel regret that does not involve a sense of guilt. A government can, for instance, punish a person for smoking cannabis and thereby, in some cases, impel him to feel regret for using the drug (or at least, for getting caught). However, the government cannot make him feel guilty without getting him to believe that what he did was wrong. | ||
George H. Smith, in ''Atheism: The Case Against God'', writes that people can be controlled by either physical or psychological sanctions: "A physical sanction, if successful, causes the emotion of fear. A psychological sanction, if successful, causes the emotion of guilt. A man motivated by fear may still retain an element of rebelliousness, of determination to strike back given the opportunity. A man motivated by guilt, however, is a man with a broken spirit; he will obey the rules without question."<ref>{{cite book|title=Atheism: The Case Against God|author=Smith, George H.|pages=173|chapter=Religious Morality}}</ref> | |||
Shame and guilt sometimes, but not always coincide; either can exist independently of the other. A person can feel ashamed of an act that he regards as foolish but not morally wrong, without feeling guilt. He can also feel guilty about committing an immoral act without feeling shame, for example if he does not care about the opinion of others or if others do not know about the act that he committed. | Shame and guilt sometimes, but not always coincide; either can exist independently of the other. A person can feel ashamed of an act that he regards as foolish but not morally wrong, without feeling guilt. He can also feel guilty about committing an immoral act without feeling shame, for example if he does not care about the opinion of others or if others do not know about the act that he committed. | ||
Revision as of 11:35, 11 August 2012
Guilt or remorse is an emotion that occurs when a person feels that his behavior has fallen short of what his own ethical principles called for him to do (or not do). It is a form of regret. Ayn Rand placed a great deal of emphasis on guilt as a means of controlling people, and titled chapter 19 of Atlas Shrugged "The Face Without Pain or Fear or Guilt." One of her characters stated, "The worst guilt is to accept an undeserved guilt".
It is not possible for a person to cause another person to feel guilt, except by getting that person to both (1) accept a moral precept as valid and (2) believe that he has fallen short of that standard. This is a quite different matter from impelling a person to feel regret that does not involve a sense of guilt. A government can, for instance, punish a person for smoking cannabis and thereby, in some cases, impel him to feel regret for using the drug (or at least, for getting caught). However, the government cannot make him feel guilty without getting him to believe that what he did was wrong.
George H. Smith, in Atheism: The Case Against God, writes that people can be controlled by either physical or psychological sanctions: "A physical sanction, if successful, causes the emotion of fear. A psychological sanction, if successful, causes the emotion of guilt. A man motivated by fear may still retain an element of rebelliousness, of determination to strike back given the opportunity. A man motivated by guilt, however, is a man with a broken spirit; he will obey the rules without question."[1]
Shame and guilt sometimes, but not always coincide; either can exist independently of the other. A person can feel ashamed of an act that he regards as foolish but not morally wrong, without feeling guilt. He can also feel guilty about committing an immoral act without feeling shame, for example if he does not care about the opinion of others or if others do not know about the act that he committed.
In some jurisdictions, governmental courts can consider a defendant's remorse (or lack thereof) as a factor relevant to sentencing for criminal offenses. It could be considered relevant to his risk of re-offending; if he is likely to commit a new crime, then the court might deem it appropriate to protect society by imprisoning him for a longer period of time.[2] Of course, there can be epistemological problems involved in determining the defendant's level of remorse; for example, he might make an insincere statement of regret in allocution. Sometimes his remorse or lack thereof can be inferred from his behavior, such as attempting to make amends for his behavior or engaging in similar criminal behavior. In a libertarian judicial system, the plaintiff might consider his perceptions of the defendant's level of regret in deciding how strict or forgiving to be in exacting restitution.