ObjectivistEthics

byDerekCiocca

In order to live, man must act; in order to act, he must make choices; in order to make choices, he must define a code of values… - Ayn Rand

•There is a fundamental choice given to living creatures – life or death

•Animals live automatically within the context of their consciousness, Man does not

•Man must develop a code of ethics by which to live because his consciousness is conceptual in nature (he cannot live automatically)

That which you act to gain or keep

Values

Your own life is the fundamental value that all other values exist for

Primary Values

•Reason as Man’s basic tool of survival

•Purpose as his choice of happiness which reason must be used to achieve

•Self-Esteem as recognition of the fact that you are able to live and achieve your purpose

Rational Selfishness

•Living independently through the use of reason for your own happiness

•Never compromising your principles or sacrificing a higher value for a lower one

“The Objectivist ethics hold that human good does not require human sacrifices and cannot be achieved by the sacrifice of anyone to anyone. It holds that the rational interests of men do not clash – that there is no conflict of interests among men who do not desire the unearned” – Ayn Rand

“I swear -- by my life and my love of it -- that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine." - John Galt