WILL AND OPINION, ENDS AND VALUES, COMMANDS AND RULES, AND OTHER TERMINOLOGICAL ISSUES
As societies grow larger and more diverse, it becomes harder for people to agree on specific goals. Instead, they may find common ground on more abstract ideas about the type of society they want. This is because different people have varying experiences and interests, and not everyone shares the same information about events happening in the world.
Though there might be limited agreement on specific actions, individuals from the same cultural background can still share similar opinions on broader social concepts. However, this can be complicated by the unclear language used in discussions about these ideas.
To clarify the conversation, important terms are defined in pairs. For instance, "will" refers to the desire to achieve a specific outcome that leads to an action, while "opinion" relates to views on different actions, shaping approval or disapproval. Opinions guide behavior but don't directly cause actions.
There is also a distinction between particular ends, which motivate specific actions, and values that represent general classes of events viewed as desirable. Laws reflect values rather than particular outcomes.
Furthermore, commands direct specific actions toward known outcomes, while rules guide behavior across unknown future actions. In diverse societies, differing individual goals lead to various decision-making centers, distinguishing between organized and spontaneous orders in society. Terms like teleocratic and nomocratic highlight these different societal structures in more detail.
As societies grow larger and more diverse, it becomes harder for people to agree on specific goals. Instead, they may find common ground on more abstract ideas about the type of society they want. This is because different people have varying experiences and interests, and not everyone shares the same information about events happening in the world.
Though there might be limited agreement on specific actions, individuals from the same cultural background can still share similar opinions on broader social concepts. However, this can be complicated by the unclear language used in discussions about these ideas.
To clarify the conversation, important terms are defined in pairs. For instance, "will" refers to the desire to achieve a specific outcome that leads to an action, while "opinion" relates to views on different actions, shaping approval or disapproval. Opinions guide behavior but don't directly cause actions.
There is also a distinction between particular ends, which motivate specific actions, and values that represent general classes of events viewed as desirable. Laws reflect values rather than particular outcomes.
Furthermore, commands direct specific actions toward known outcomes, while rules guide behavior across unknown future actions. In diverse societies, differing individual goals lead to various decision-making centers, distinguishing between organized and spontaneous orders in society. Terms like teleocratic and nomocratic highlight these different societal structures in more detail.