Social Solidarity and the Enforcement of Morality

Abstract

It is possible to extract from Plato's Republic and Laws, and perhaps from Aristotle's Ethics and Politics, following about role of law in relation to enforcement of morality: law of city state exists not merely to secure that men have opportunity to lead a morally good life, but to see that they do. According to this not only may law be used to punish men for doing what morally it is wrong for them to do, but it should be so used; for promotion of moral virtue by these means and by others is one of Ends or Purposes of a society complex enough to have developed a legal system. This theory is strongly associated with a specific conception of morality as a uniquely true or correct set of principles-not manmade, but either awaiting man's discovery by use of his reason or (in a theological setting) awaiting its disclosure by revelation. I shall call this theory the classical thesis and not discuss it further. From classical there is to be distinguished what I shall call the disintegration thesis. This inverts order of instrumentality between society on one hand and morality on other as it appears in classical thesis; for in this society is not instrument of moral life; rather morality is valued as cement of society, bond, or one of bonds, without which men would not cohere in society. This is associated strongly with a relativist conception of morality: according to it, morality may vary from society to society, and to merit enforcement by criminal law, morality need have no rational or other specific content. It is not quality of morality but its cohesive power which matters. What is important is not quality of creed but strength of belief in it. The enemy of society is not error but indifference.' The case for enforcement of morality on this view is that its maintenance is necessary to prevent disintegration of society.