Ignatieff: everyday but universal virtues

Michael Ignatieff and his book

Canadian politician and intellectual, in this book he reflects on everyday virtues, practiced by human beings regardless of the culture to which they belong. His aim is nothing less than to revise the usual discourse on the virtues of the human race. human rightsThe company is fed by the expectations created by the treaties and by the international conventions.

Ignatieff reminds us that, for many ordinary people, this remains an abstraction that has little influence on their daily lives. In this respect, the thesis is clear: laws are not enough; virtues are also necessary. morales or ordinary. Indeed, the language of rights is that of states and liberal elites, according to our author. Theoretically, it would be the perfect expression for the construction of a ethics The problem is that many of our planet's inhabitants cling to the local because they consider that globalization is not the only way to achieve globalization. globalization is a threat to their daily existence.

Universal values

Universal values are increasingly being denied, at least in practice, in the name of a democracy that ends up supporting selfish national interests. We are witnessing the paradox that the principle of democracy, of self-determination in the broad sense of the term, is imposed, with little regard for the principle of justice for all. The consequence, and we are seeing it in nationalism and populism of various kinds, is that the interests of certain countries with democratically elected governments tend to prevail over the interests of people in other countries.

In an age of insecurities such as ours, everyday virtues such as confidence, trust, trustworthiness and tolerance, the sorrythe reconciliation or resilience are of transcendental importance. Michael Ignatieff has been able to verify this in his book, the result of field research for the Carnegie Endowment in countries as diverse as the USA, Brazil, Myanmar, Japan and South Africa. In any of these places, virtues are common to human beings, and both Ignatieff and his fellow researchers had the opportunity to verify this, as they felt generously welcomed.

The ordinary virtues are, by definition, anti-political and anti-ideological. The author's training in classical philosophy is clearly seen in his belief that virtues take hold from the struggle against vices, and he mentions such vices as greed, ambition, enmity and hatred. Like his teacher, Isaiah Berlin, Michael Ignatieff is a defender of the legacy of the Enlightenment, although he recognizes its deficiencies derived from the crooked shaft of humanity, in Kant's well-known expression. In contrast to the pessimism of those who believe that we live in a Hobbesian world ruled by predators, Ignatieff seems to be in favor of a morale Kantian type, in which the individual, the local, reaches a universal dimension.

However, the author emphasizes that the national pride and local traditions are at the forefront of a strong resistance to any universal morality. This explains why democratic majorities, attached to local values, do not believe in universal obligations towards others. These are times of sovereignism on a global scale, and this is not exclusive to Russia and China, but this sovereignist discourse is also supported by citizens of democratic countries. Ignatieff underlines the power of the virtues political regimes. Situations of oligarchy, corruption and injustice can occur in any system, but they should be addressed through virtues. Without going any further, in this book, we are reminded that the personal piety has done more to save lives than mere rights language.