Objectivism 101

1. Objectivism 101 Diana Mertz Hsieh Lecture Four: The Virtues Wednesday, July 3, 2002 13th Annual Summer Seminar of The Objectivist Center

2. Objectivism 101 Schedule • Sunday Philosophy • Monday Reality and Reason • Tuesday Life and Happiness • Wednesday The Virtues • Thursday Individual Rights • Friday Spiritual Fuel

3. The Nature of Virtues • Virtues are actions by which we gain and/or keep our values • Virtues are commitments, in thought and action, to the types of actions required to achieve rational moral values

4. The Eight Major Virtues • Rationality • Productiveness • Independence • Honesty • Justice • Benevolence • Integrity • Pride

5. 1: Rationality • Rationality is the commitment to objectively grasping and acting on the facts of reality • Rationality requires a commitment to… • The facts of reality • Full conscious awareness • The method of objectivity …at all times, in all areas of life

6. Rationality in Action • Rationality is the commitment to objectively grasping and acting on the facts of reality • Example One: While at the emergency room, the doctor asks you to hold your young child down during a painful procedure in which keeping still is of the utmost importance. • Example Two: A large and out-of-control forest fire is headed towards your neighborhood. The county sheriff recommends that residents prepare for evacuation.

7. 2: Productiveness • Productiveness is the commitment to achieving the values that sustain your life • Productiveness means… • Creating values • Trading with others • Not mindless drudgery, not mooching or looting from others

8. Productiveness in Action • Productiveness is the commitment to achieving the values that sustain your life • Example One: You are studying hard for finals when a friend asks if you want to go to the last showing of a movie you’ve been wanting to see. • Example Two: You are just getting started in your work as a freelance programmer. A potential client offers you a job that will get your work noticed, although the pay will be low.

9. 3: Independence • Independence is the commitment to forming and acting upon your own judgments • Two forms of independence: • Independence in thought • Independence in action

10. Independence in Action • Independence is the commitment to forming and acting upon your own judgments and living by your own mind • Example One: Two of your friends are urging you to break up with your new boyfriend, but only offer vague reasons. • Example Two: You see a doctor about your allergic reaction to certain foods. He recommends certain drug as treatment.

11. 4: Honesty • Honesty is the refusal to fake the facts of reality • Two forms of honesty: • Honesty with oneself • Honesty with others

12. Honesty in Action • Honesty is the refusal to fake the facts of reality • Example One: Your hot-tempered boyfriend blows up during an argument and punches you. He then becomes very apologetic, promising that he will never hit you again. • Example Two: The office gossip pesters you incessantly for details of your horrible date last night, which you do not want to discuss.

13. 5: Justice • Justice is the virtue of evaluating others objectively and acting accordingly • Two aspects of justice: • Objective judgment of others • Acting based on those judgments • A failure to judge others only encourages evil

14. Justice in Action • Justice is the virtue of evaluating others objectively and acting accordingly • Example One: Your friend Jane is in a feud with a mutual acquaintance, Jack. Jane wants you to disassociate yourself from Jack out of loyalty to her. • Example Two: You just caught your wife cheating on you for the first time. She is begging you for another chance.

15. 6: Benevolence • Benevolence is the commitment to treating other people as potential trading partners • Three aspects of benevolence: • Civility • Sensitivity • Generosity

16. Benevolence in Action • Benevolence is the commitment to treating other people as potential trading partners • Example One: You return to the TOC Summer Seminar in the upcoming years. You hang out with your friends from 2002, but you are also introduced to many new people each year. • Example Two: A pedestrian gets struck by a car near where you are walking. She is obviously seriously injured, but still alive.

17. 7: Integrity • Integrity is the commitment to acting in accordance with long-range values and moral principles • Integrity requires us: • To think past short-term gains to long-range consequences • To pursue and defend our values in face of opposition • Integrity is the virtue of acting on virtue

18. Integrity in Action • Integrity is the commitment to acting in accordance with long-range values and moral principles • Example One: Your mother asks you to convince your sister to dump her new boyfriend because he is black. • Example Two: Your boss offers you a promotion if you can find a way to weasel out of a contract without paying the pre-arranged penalties.

19. 8: Pride • Pride is the commitment to one’s own moral perfection (moral ambitiousness) • Pride requires us to hold ourselves up the the highest moral standard • Recognize and remedy your moral failures • Recognize your moral successes “…as man is a being of self-made wealth, so he is a being of self-made soul…”

20. Pride in Action • Pride is the commitment to one’s own moral perfection • Example One: You forgot to meet a friend for a planned lunch. She’s mad at you for standing her up. • Example Two: You realize that you haven’t been very productive at work in the past few weeks.

21. The Eight Major Virtues • Rationality • Productiveness • Independence • Honesty • Justice • Benevolence • Integrity • Pride

22. Today’s Topics • Virtue • Rationality • Productiveness • Independence • Honesty • Justice • Benevolence • Integrity • Pride