Moral Codes

[Renee]

ooh, thats a good question. I'm gonna have to think on that one for a bit. I love that quote.

[Maxine]

I believe most people do try to live by a moral code, but under extreme conditions they may have to bend or eliminate those beliefs.

[Betty]

Sure leaves room for thought.

[Retta]

Moral Codes in this particular time frame was dictated by privileged society which used their political and religious manipulations to exert control for more monetary wealth. All of the other cultural groups in the strata of England and Australia developed their set of moral codes which they imposed on the male and female convicts, the Tasmanian Aboriginal people, and the innocents ( babies or children orphans in both groups) for their own new status or survival in their own moral code interpretations. Palawa "first man" Aboriginal people of Tasmania had a defined set of moral codes for both male and female members and their separate groups. Both had female and male elders taught their children through their Palawa language and traditions. However the immorality of the early British and other European countries systemically eradicated the majority of this Aboriginal group and other Aboriginal groups. Moral Code without Moral Conscience= Human Displacement and Genocide

[Sue]

It seems easy to have a moral code about the behavior of others and not so much about self. I agree with Maxine that beliefs can be bent or broken under the test of extreme conditions, especially if a person thinks that no one will find out.

[Michele]

I agree that most people try to live by a moral code but that code can change depending on circumstance, experience or culture. It’s easy to say “I would never…” but until your code is challenged you truly don’t know how you’ll behave. Given Hazel’s situation, she and Evangeline could have killed Buck on the ship and claimed self-defense but they didn’t. It wasn’t until Ruby’s life was in jeopardy (his life or Ruby’s) that murder became an option.

[Michelle]

I believe those of us who are mothers would likely go beyond a line if our children were threatened. But it’s also true that most of us have not been tested by situations of abject desperation. Think about the scene in Elie Wiesel’s Night, in which a son is stealing bread from his own father, while the father is crying out that the bread was for him, the son, all along….

[Maxine]

Michelle that scene in NIGHT that you remembered evoked such profound sadness in me

[Michelle]

I think I first read it when my kids did, for assigned reading in school—and that scene stayed with me all these years.

[Retta]

Trevor thanks for sharing your comments about Night.