I've been reading 'The Happiness Hypothesis' by Jonathan Haidt, and a chapter entitled 'The Felicity of Virtue' explores the notion that character, which used to be an important attribute to have, has been superceded by personality, which is the perfect new, shiny and improved accompaniment to mere humanity, perfect for any mere mortal living in an individualist culture. 'Having character' has been kind of relegated to a moral ancestry, where the Greek philosophers might have pursued the meaning and intent of accumulating character, but in our post-utilitarian post-post modern world, moral character has been sacrificed to knowing what appropriate moral actions actually are. Which seems to confuse the underlying structure with the process a tad, for my thinking.
Anyrate, there are also twenty four character strengths that lead to six higher-level virtues, as defined by Chris Peterson and Martin Seligman, which you can explore in detail through the VIA Signature Strengths Questionnaire here.
I'm listing them out with the intent of taking one strength per day, for a month, and sitting with the word in contemplation during Compline.
1. Wisdom
- Curiosity
- Love of learning
- Judgement
- Ingenuity
- Emotional intelligence
- Perspective
2. Courage
- Valor
- Perseverance
- Integrity
3. Humanity
- Kindness
- Loving
4. Justice
- Citizenship
- Fairness
- Leadership
5. Temperance
- Self-control
- Prudence
- Humility
6. Transcendence
- Appreciation of beauty and excellence
- Gratitude
- Hope
- Spirituality
- Forgiveness
- Humour
- Zest
No comments:
Post a Comment