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Moral Illusions

11/19/2021

3 Comments

 
We are all familiar with optical illusions. In certain environments, straight lines appear to be bent; or, looking at a picture of a candle stick, we see an old woman who suddenly changes into a young woman. Optical illusions occur because of the structure of our brains. The human species sees these illusions because of the way our brains function.

Unfortunately, the brain is also subject to moral illusions, one of which is the self-serving bias. Because something is good or enjoyable for us, we assume that it is good for everybody. For example, a person has casual sex outside of marriage or commitment to one’s partner. That person then assumes that all sex is good under all circumstances. Or someone who’s obese sees fatness as acceptable because they like to eat cake and ice cream.

There is also the in-group out-group bias. Democrats perceive sexual abuse by Bill Clinton as normal—as “what men do” according to one Democratic woman I knew. Donald Trump’s liaisons, on the other hand, are evil and depraved since he is a Republican. (I am a Democrat, I should note.) Or Quakers see themselves as spiritually good while evangelical Christians are bad and deluded.

A third moral illusion is the just world fallacy.  To soothe our own anxiety about life, we assume that the world is basically good and fair. So, when some  evil is inflicted upon a person, we assume that the victim—at least a little—deserves what he or she got. An example might be the girl in tight jean shorts and revealing blouse who is raped. We think to ourselves, “Well, she really shouldn’t have been dressed so provocatively.” Or a drug addict dies from an accidental overdose; and we say to ourselves, “He shouldn’t have been taking drugs in the first place.”   

To better understand both optical and moral illusions I recommend visiting this web page from the University of Texas (my alma mater). And we might ask ourselves what moral illusions Quakers tend to hold.  

~Richard Russell
3 Comments
Donald Newman Lathrop
11/25/2021 09:08:09 pm

I like it. I shall try to give more reflection to your concept of moral illusions. That's a term I don't recall using when I taught ethics, though I think it's a good one to explore, especially today as there is such a spread between left and right, with all thinking they are correct.

Peace,
Don

Reply
Richard Russell
11/26/2021 07:21:24 am

Hi, Don.

Of course, moral illusions are not "my" concept. My post is based on the comparatively new field of behavioral ethics, which--unlike the ethics of "should"--examines how people actually behave ethically and is based upon a combination of psychology and neuroscience. (See the link in the post.)

Curiously, the very day you posted your comment, I got the following thoughts in my email from Jonathan Lockwood Huie:

http://www.jlhuie.com/

Once again, thanks for your comment. I really, really look forward to reading your reflections.

Reply
Richard Russell
11/26/2021 07:23:28 am

Note: the Huie quote changes from day to day but may be searched for on the site.

Reply



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