Wisdom and Ethical Dilemmas
“What should I do?” This question is one of the most universal ones in any human society. Whether we are considering minor dilemmas or major ones, and whether we find ourselves in a position of power or not, it can be difficult to know how to act.
In this article, you’ll read about some common wisdom and ethical dilemmas that people face every day — like what to do when you encounter a homeless person on the street. You’ll also learn how to act in a variety of situations using different ethical decision-making models — including how to resolve ethical dilemmas using nonviolence.
There are a number of ways you can respond to the question “What should I do?”
1) Do nothing. In some cases, like when you encounter a homeless person on the street, there is no “correct” response. In such cases, it can be best to just act naturally and do nothing. You might not feel like you’ve done anything to help or improve the situation, but that is not always the point.
2) Do something. It could be that your passivity is actually hurting someone. For example, you might see a homeless person on the street and think nothing of it, but you might be inadvertently ignoring a person who really needs your help.
3) Do something directly to assist or help the person at hand. If you are in a position to do so, helping someone in need always feels good. You’ll feel better about yourself knowing that you helped or made a difference — even if only to one other person.
What Should I Do? Wisdom and Ethical Dilemmas continues...
Previous Article: Introduction to Wisdom and Ethical Dilemmas (Part 1)
Next Article: What Should I Do? Wisdom and Ethical Dilemmas (Part 3)
Texts That Will Change Your Life: The Best Quotes From Ancient Philosophers & Their Modern Day Lessons! is now available in Kindle format on Amazon.com! It makes a great gift, and it's only $3.99! Read more here or click the image below:
You can also read an excerpt from the book here . Copyright 2013 David Rodeback. All rights reserved.
The Best of David Rodeback (so far) is now available in Kindle format on Amazon.com! Over 800 fascinating thoughts, ideas, and aphorisms by one of the most interesting men in the world. This book is a bargain at any price! Read more here or click the image below:
You can also read an excerpt from the book here .
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As we begin a new year, I'd like to share with you some of the most fascinating thoughts, ideas, and quotes from ancient philosophers that I've come across over the past year. Each quote is paired with an observation I made about each quote. This allows me to comment on the quote and also have it make a little more sense.
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Pelagius said: "When God saw Adam lying prone on the ground outside Eden, He said to him: "Adam, Adam, why are you lying down like that? Get up; you can now have dominion over all things. You will rule over the beasts and all the birds of the air, and you will name them all after yourself." And Adam replied: "This is a hard task, Lord. I cannot manage it. You must help me."
Geniusus said: "I would like to be of your opinion that love is a habit of mind; but I know that it is not. No, Love does not make it easy for us to do what we believe we ought, but it does make it easy for us to do what we want."
Plato said: "Happiness seems to me a thing more within our reach than knowledge is. We have been deprived by nature of some excellent parts which are necessary for our happiness. What are these? They are calculation, prudence, memory, strength. But we have been given others which when added to these make up the sum of wisdom. What are they? Reason and courage."
Aristotle said: "Experience shows that our punishment is rarely equal to our crime."
Aristotle said: "No art can be shown today at a sufficient time and in sufficient detail to enable us to distinguish between what is beautiful and good from what is ugly and bad. The only way of testing this is by experience. When the world becomes older and more civilized, then we shall test them."
Steven Pressfield said: "The professional is the one who not only sees what must be done, but who also smells the fear and doubts in his own soul and forces himself to execute the act anyway."
R.W. Emerson said: "In every work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts: they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty."
Theodore Zeldin said: "When our parents are no longer with us, children see their own lives in sharp relief. A child of five asking her father when she will die is not thinking about herself, but about him. She wants to spare him pain. The child has already had to give up her parents' love, and now she sees herself as the mourner. When children write their parents' obituaries, they fill out the forms as if they are themselves the dead."
Lao Tzu said: "A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving."
Euripides said: "The trick of it is remembering it's all a trick. And never treat your friends as if they were your equals or your betters. Friends always owe one another more than even accounts can tally.
Conclusion: "This is the way of all great writing: to evoke a truth in one sentence that makes you remember it forever."
The best book I've ever read: What Should I Do? Wisdom & Ethical Dilemmas by David Rodeback
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Geniusus is now available in Kindle format on Amazon.com! It's only $3.99! Read more here or click the image below:
You can also read an excerpt from the book here . Copyright 2013 David Rodeback. All rights reserved.
What Should I Do? Wisdom and Ethical Dilemmas will change your life.