Some Thoughts on Morality

from Steven Pinker

“Morality comes from a commitment to treat others as we wish to be treated, which follows from the realization that none of us is the sole occupant of the universe.”

“The more you think about and interact with other people, the more you realize that it is untenable to privilege your interests over theirs.”

“[E]quality is not the empirical claim that all groups of humans are interchangeable; it is the moral principle that individuals should not be judged or constrained by the average properties of their group. …If we recognize this principle, no one has to spin myths about the indistinguishability of the sexes to justify equality.”

“Morality… is a consequence of the interchangeability of perspectives and the opportunity the world provides for positive-sum games.”

“Reading is a technology for perspective-taking. When someone else's thoughts are in your head, you are observing the world from that person's vantage point…”

“If you aren't just brought up in your tribe but interact with other people either directly or vicariously, through journalism and literature, you see what life is like from other points of view and are less likely to demonize them or dehumanize others and more likely to empathize with them…”

“'Capitalism' is a dirty word for many intellectuals, but there are a number of studies showing that open economies and free trade are negatively correlated with genocide and war.”

“Anything that makes it easier to imagine trading places with someone else increases your moral consideration for that other person… Commerce, trade and exchange make other people more valuable alive than dead, and mean that people try to anticipate what the other guy needs and wants. It engages the mechanisms of reciprocal altruism, as the evolutionary biologists call it, as opposed to raw dominance.”

“Morality is not just any old topic in psychology but close to our conception of the meaning of life. Moral goodness is what gives each of us the sense that we are worthy human beings.”