Modern America seems to have misplaced honor and shame. We often honor people who haven’t advanced the common good but have merely achieved notoriety or celebrity, or amassed great wealth or power. We shame people not for having exploited the common good for personal gain but for failing to conform to prevailing ideas about fashion or coolness, or for associating with the wrong people. If we’re to revive the common good we must use honor and shame appropriately, bringing public attention to virtuous behavior and public condemnation to behavior that erodes public trust.
