Morals and Values are similar and often used interchangeably. But Morals are our ideas of right and wrong. Values are the degree to which those morals are entrenched and work themselves out in how we live our life. Ethics shows how deeply we value a moral code. An ethical problem is one where a person believes in a moral code but deliberately violates his own belief system or the prevailing morals of the culture.
Morals and values are guiding forces in the lives of individuals as they give them a sense of direction as also a code of conduct when interacting with others in society. We are always looking for the moral of a story or the deeper message the author wants to convey to society. On the other hand, we want our kids to undergo a value-based education to be able to stand firmly in their lives as adults. We think of morals as proper or right behavior code while values are our beliefs about what is right and wrong.
Morals – Morals are principles of right behavior inculcated in children by the society they grew up in, used as a standard of personal accountability, upon which law is loosely based. People who adhere to those principles avoid offending and betraying others, avoid breaking laws based on moral principles and thus avoid trouble. Morality is essentially the difference between civilized behavior and barbarism, a civilization, and chaotic social order. There is a right answer.
Most of the morals come from religion though there are also morals that are imposed by a particular political system as in a communist society; hoarding is considered a sin against fellow people. We consider someone or something immoral on the basis of our values. Morals are like unwritten laws and meant to be followed like commandments in a religion. Morals are mandatory, and all individuals are expected to follow them. Moral is also an adjective that means good or right.
Values – Values are belief systems that an individual builds up as he grows about things, people, and social issues and concepts as to what is right and what is wrong.
Values are mostly built gradually, but the foundation is provided by our parents, teachers, textbooks, and our religion. We are greatly influenced by the deeds of great men and women from the past and decide to stick to the values they held in their lives. Values are fundamental beliefs that tell us what is right and wrong and what is just and fair. If someone believes honesty is the best policy, it tells others that he holds the value of honesty very high in his life. Talking of values, there are many concepts that are dear to our hearts such as the values of democracy, honesty, justice, liberty, patriotism, respect, love, compassion, etc.
The difference between Morals and Values –
Morals and values are a part of the behavioral aspect of a person. There is not much difference between morals and values but both are correlated to each other. Morals are formed from the inborn values. The moral is a system of beliefs that is taught for deciding good or bad whereas values are personal beliefs or something that comes from within. These are emotionally related for deciding right or wrong. Morals have more social value and acceptance than values, therefore a person is judged more for his moral character than the values. One is said to be immoral for a person without morals but no such term is there for the person without values.
- Morals and values are concepts very close in meaning and meant to keep us on the right path while live and interact with others in society.
- Morals are codes of conduct that tell us what is right and what is wrong, and they mostly come from religion and society.
- Values are internal belief systems held by individuals that guide their behavior.
- Values are personal and subjective while morals are universal and objective.
- Values can change while morals remain the same.
Another difference between morals and values is that moral is a motivation or a key for leading a good life in the right direction whereas value is imbibed within a person, it can be bad or good depending on the person’s choice. It can also be called as intuition or the call of the heart. Morals do not determine the values but are formed because of the values. Morals contribute to the system of beliefs and are the values that we get from society.
Lastly, the difference between morals and values is that morals are like commandments set by the elders and to be followed by the descendants. They can be set by one’s elders or religious teachers or leaders of society who want to lead people away from immoral thoughts. One always treasures the morals throughout his life and they never change with time or conditions. While on the other hand values are not set by the society or teachers but are governed by an individual. Values do not mean that it is always right to do so. Whatever is valuable for one person may not be the same for the other. Hence it is a personal aspect and changes according to different situations with time and needs.
Actually, there is no difference both are nature and character of a thing. Morality is character and value is nature. They can only exist together. If they were separate then it will be like a rock and solidity existing separate from each other. But the rock is hard (morality) because of its value (solidity).
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