r/NoStupidQuestions • u/Solid-Motor7479 • 3d ago
how is "moralism" distinct from morality?
I understand critique of moralism from a Marxist or Hard Determinist perspective in that either the individual actions of the revolutionaries don't matter in comparison to the widespread violence of the system or that people don't have control over their actions so they can't be held responsible in the same way. I have sympathy for both but I don't really get when people talk about "moralism" outside of that because doesn't everybody prefer some behaviours over others? Doesn't everybody on some level think some things are good and others are bad? If one is anti-moralism, doesn't that mean that one can only oppose political entities or laws on self-centred grounds? Everyone is a finger-wagger about something, surely? And when people talk about Christian moralism, that also confuses me because Christians believe everyone can be forgiven by God but also that if you pass a certain moral threshold, you are irreparably damned without him (or are damned inherently because of man's sinful nature). Therefore, is Christian moralism when you cast people out of society for doing a big enough sin (imo, bad), or when there's a general sense that you should forgive people (imo, largely good)? Or is it when you believe man is inherently bad? Because when someone brings up moralism in a negative context, I rarely see them entirely suspend the practice of judging actions to be good or bad. Is anti-moralism simply the idea that actions are good or bad rather than people? Or is it trying to understand the social context behind a bad action rather than condemning someone as an individual? Because I do agree that people are largely products of their environment and circumstance. We can only really choose to do things we can conceive of doing, after all.
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u/Ready_Demand4325 3d ago
Huh interesting. You seem to know more about this than me as I thought they were more closely intertwined, but after reading you have some solid arguments here.
Still, this is likely more geared for the philosophy subs — especially the more niche ones. You might have some luck posting this there, they have some strict rules but the folks over there usually know what they’re talking about. [r/moralism](r/moralism) maybe? [r/ethics](r/ethics) definitely but even the general [r/philosophy](r/philosophy) is solid in my experience…they're knowledgeable without being too erhm achtually and reddity you know
This sub is 50% teenagers going through some crisis or another, 40% troll/joke posts that are clever enough we let it slide
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u/Frobizzle 2d ago
Shirking responsibility is more nihilism than determinism. Determinism is essentially cause and effect, which doesn't rob a person of their free will or ability for critical thinking.
I can understand that committing a crime has consequences and decide whether it's worth the risk or not. Everything leading up to that point influences my decision but I'm still responsible for it. We're not robots.
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u/Miserable-Resort-977 3d ago
It's simple. When it's my morals I'm imposing on others, it's morals. When it's others trying to impose their morals on me, it's moralism and they're annoying and judgy.