Philosophy and Life by A. C. Grayling

Author:A. C. Grayling [Grayling, A. C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780241993217
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2023-02-09T00:00:00+00:00

10. Duties

It is a vexation to some to reflect that, having not asked to come into the world, nevertheless upon arrival in it – at least, upon arrival at the stage in life when they become aware of the following facts – they discover that they have obligations and duties, that there are expectations, that like a fly stuck in a spider’s web they are entangled in the net of prevailing social sentiment, opinion, custom, tradition and expectation, not least relating to other people’s rights and demands, and to what they themselves are obliged to do in order to get by. In Chapter 1 the word ‘normativity’ was introduced to describe this net. A significant aspect of the acculturation of children – their ‘upbringing’ – is to educate them in the behaviour and sentiments appropriate to inhabiting normativity’s net. The conventional philosophy of life they are equipped with in this way is fitted to the net, even if the net is not reciprocally fitted to people; as is obvious enough, for practical reasons the net’s nodes and interstices gather up the awkward diversity of human individuals into a small number of categories, and demand overall conformity from them.

But although the entanglement in normativity is a vexation to some, it is in fact a convenience, and even a relief, to others – perhaps most others. Many people like having normativity’s obligations because they provide a sense of purpose, and endow life’s standard activities with a sense of significance which, again to the satisfaction or relief of many, is shared with most others – for few like to be at odds with society, or to stand out as abnormal. Cleaving to normativity makes people feel that there is shape to their days and years – indeed, to their lives. What is asked of them by their place in the net constitutes the terms of life, and therefore the challenge to answer Socrates’ question does not arise; the duties defined by normativity stand before them, generally quite simple and clear, giving instructions about what to do in the family, at work, in the street, among other people in shops, buses and bars. To the question ‘What sort of person should I be?’ normativity gives the answer: ‘Someone who fits in and gets by.’

Although there are shades of difference in the meanings of ‘duty’ and ‘obligation’, they are, in the present connection, the same thing: if you have an obligation, you have a duty to fulfil it. The family of other concepts with which both are associated includes ‘bond’, ‘agreement’, ‘promise’, ‘contract’, ‘commitment’, ‘requirement’ and even ‘liability’, and all of them connote ideas about trust and accountability. They all also imply constraint, and sanction for failure, whether legal or in the form of social disapprobation.

The obligations of normativity come in two broad types, voluntary and involuntary. The former are those we self-impose by signing a contract, getting married or booking a holiday. The latter are those imposed by the mere fact of membership of society.

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