Why the most dangerous people are shameless

The language as a condensed expression of accumulated centuries-old life of people in the community contains many words for bad character traits.

It is interesting that these are universally defined traits, because in every human community on the planet lies, thieving, dishonesty, boasting, greed, lust for power, bribery, quarrelsomeness, duplicity, unfairness, recklessness, wickedness, fickleness, usury, etc. have a negative connotation.

Every language has words and a handful of synonyms for those traits.

What range of behavior in different cultures and historical epochs is placed under each of these labels is another matter.

As Terry Eagleton (Culture, Clio, 2017) says, there is no human culture in which stealing, slandering, defaming or strangling (let's add beatings, burning houses, etc.) other people, simply because you want to and can, is an acceptable custom . In practice, this is done, of course, but usually justification is sought in some "higher reasons", or necessity, and it is most often justified by demonizing or dehumanizing those who are harmed or harmed (lower race, enemy, domestic traitor and foreign mercenary…)

But it is my impression, and it is possible that not everyone would agree with me, that there is one, so to speak, core trait that has a disinhibitory effect on behavior, because it enables the unhindered, even unbridled manifestation of every other character-morally ugly trait, and that is - shamelessness.

Let me try to explain.

Although in our time there is a tendency to consider shame, together with shyness, as outdated, neurotic, dysfunctional, shame belongs to the inevitable (because we have self-awareness) and necessary socio-moral feelings. Shame is one of the most unpleasant feelings, it affects the whole person, who would rather "fall into the ground". That's why the fear of shame is at the root of stage fright and social anxiety, but it is necessary as an important and powerful warning sign that prevents us from doing what we will be ashamed of.

Shame, guilt, shame, remorse, that is, gratitude, compassion, pride, are members of the family of moral emotions.

The issue here is not the shame and embarrassment that come from morally irrelevant actions, such as when someone realizes that they have been seen or, God forbid, photographed while earnestly picking their nose; or when you unintentionally "let loose" in a room full of people; or is ashamed of his appearance, poverty, relatives, origin, etc.

Not because such shame is less unpleasant and encompassing for the person, but because what causes it does not cause any harm or evil to another (well, "letting the wind" is not very pleasant to the environment).

To return to shamelessness, which I would define not as a character flaw like others, but as a deficiency, a kind of emotional defect and blindness of the mind. Although many would, and rightfully so, put hypocrisy somewhere at the top or near the top of the list of ugly human traits, I would say that there is (still) hope for hypocrites.

In moral psychology, hypocrisy or duplicity means the phenomenon that someone preaches certain moral rules and principles, but does not adhere to them in life. Or that he secretly ("behind the back") says and does what he would not do in front of someone else or others.

And such a person still has some awareness and feeling about what is good and what is bad, what is right or appropriate and what is not, what is beautiful and what is ugly, tasteless and miserable to say and do. That's why he tries to hide his shameful intentions, behaviors and actions.

In other words, he is ashamed of them.

What can be said when that last obstacle is removed and when not only in society, but also in public, in front of an audience of millions provided by the mass media, without the slightest discomfort - not even if the cheeks don't blush a little, stutter, lower the voice, hunch the shoulders and the head, look down - dethrones, flatters, flatters, invests, flatters, woos, sings, "draws in" to Power, Force and Power?

Or, when - without blinking, without any non-verbal sign of discomfort, in fact - "fat" lies, and indisputable facts are available to everyone.

Either because they are recorded in the collective and fresh memory ("there was no choice" in June 2020), in the form of audiovisual records ("no one said it was the funniest virus") or at a distance of one click on the appropriate link ("brother is only employed, not the director of that company").

Let's add the cheerful political flight of individuals or entire committees, the self-confident and beaming post-election betrayal of the citizens' trust and betrayal, of course, always in favor of the winner.

Why do those who have not lost moral intuition, the ability of moral self-awareness and self-knowledge have to feel, again and again, shame instead of shameless people?

A hypocrite engages in miserable, cowardly, sinful and undignified behavior out of public view and at least frees us, as they say, from the transference of blame. The hidden violator of fundamental and elementary moral principles has not (yet) fallen to the level where character flaws and ethical violations are normalized and valorized. It is prevented by shame (when it is not just the fear of legal, political or social sanctions).

The famous Russian literary theoretician and critic Bielinski said that when morality leaves a person, his mind leaves him right after.

I will allow myself to rephrase and build on his succinct sentence: when shame leaves a man, his mind leaves him, but so do all other virtues. The integrity of the personality is torn apart, because shame is the guardian of human dignity.

Shame is a sign that the moral instinct, which is embedded in the biological structure of people, is preserved.

Shame is that brake, which when it breaks, a person unstoppably rushes downhill.

Everything becomes normal, permissible and acceptable to him.

We cannot trust people without shame in anything.

The author is a philosopher and psychotherapist

(danas.rs)