Human, All Too Human, Part 45 summary
Part 45 of 152 · 2 min to read the part
In 45, the speaker traces moral judgments to two sources: rulers who value the power to repay kindness and injury, and powerless people who distrust everyone. The argument distinguishes these opposing outlooks and concludes that existing morality rests on the foundation established by ruling groups.
What happens
- Among ruling groups, people count as good when they can repay kindness and injury, while powerless people count as bad.
- The powerful share bonds of mutual repayment, and even enemies qualify as good when they possess this power.
- Goodness counts as inherited, so a noble person’s wrongdoing receives an explanation through divine interference.
- Among the powerless, every other being appears hostile, and apparent kindness arouses suspicion of concealed harm.
- This distrust obstructs shared feeling and threatens collective survival; the speaker traces existing morality to ruling groups instead.
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Why does an enemy not necessarily count as bad among ruling groups?
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