--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The ethic of autonomy is based on the…" description: "\"“The ethic of autonomy is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, autonomous individuals with wants, needs, and preferences. People shou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/jonathan-haidt-1823_body-is-a-temple_the-ethic-of-autonomy-is-based-on-the-id_91915.jpg" --- # The ethic of autonomy is based on the idea that people… ![“The ethic of autonomy is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, autonomous individuals with wants, needs, and preferences. People should be free to satisfy these wants, needs, and preferences as they see fit, and so societies develop moral concepts such as rights, liberty, and…” quote by Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/jonathan-haidt-1823_body-is-a-temple_the-ethic-of-autonomy-is-based-on-the-id_91915.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/jonathan-haidt-1823_body-is-a-temple_the-ethic-of-autonomy-is-based-on-the-id_91915.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cae/jonathan-haidt-1823_body-is-a-temple_the-ethic-of-autonomy-is-based-on-the-id_91915.jpg) > ““The ethic of autonomy is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, autonomous individuals with wants, needs, and preferences. People should be free to satisfy these wants, needs, and preferences as they see fit, and so societies develop moral concepts such as rights, liberty, and justice, which allow people to coexist peacefully without interfering too much in each other’s projects. This is the dominant ethic in individualistic societies. You find it in the writings of utilitarians such as John Stuart Mill and Peter Singer11 (who value justice and rights only to the extent that they increase human welfare), and you find it in the writings of deontologists such as Kant and Kohlberg (who prize justice and rights even in cases where doing so may reduce overall welfare). But as soon as you step outside of Western secular society, you hear people talking in two additional moral languages. The ethic of community is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, members of larger entities such as families, teams, armies, companies, tribes, and nations. These larger entities are more than the sum of the people who compose them; they are real, they matter, and they must be protected. People have an obligation to play their assigned roles in these entities. Many societies therefore develop moral concepts such as duty, hierarchy, respect, reputation, and patriotism. In such societies, the Western insistence that people should design their own lives and pursue their own goals seems selfish and dangerous—a sure way to weaken the social fabric and destroy the institutions and collective entities upon which everyone depends. The ethic of divinity is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, temporary vessels within which a divine soul has been implanted.12 People are not just animals with an extra serving of consciousness; they are children of God and should behave accordingly. The body is a temple, not a playground. Even if it does no harm and violates nobody’s rights when a man has sex with a chicken carcass, he still shouldn’t do it because it degrades him, dishonors his creator, and violates the sacred order of the universe. Many societies therefore develop moral concepts such as sanctity and sin, purity and pollution, elevation and degradation. In such societies, the personal liberty of secular Western nations looks like libertinism, hedonism, and a celebration of humanity’s baser instincts.13”” [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Contrasts three moral frameworks—autonomy, community, divinity—showing how cultures prioritize individual rights, collective duties, or sacred obligations. **In simple terms:** Cultural moral diversity. Key Takeaway Ethics vary across societies. Themes moral philosophy cultural relativism individualism collectivism religion Mood analytical thought‑provoking Type explanatory academic When to use this quote - cross‑cultural ethics class - policy design for multicultural societies Key Concepts autonomy ethic community ethic divinity ethic Practical Applications - comparative ethics research - global human‑rights advocacy Questions to Reflect On - How do these ethics intersect in modern pluralistic societies? - Can policies honor all three without conflict? A Different Perspective Some argue these categories oversimplify complex moral landscapes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body is a temple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-is-a-temple/) [Dominant Ethic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dominant-ethic-1139276/) [Ethic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethic/) [Ethic Autonomy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethic-autonomy-1139275/) [Ethic Individualistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethic-individualistic-1139274/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/john-stuart-mill/) [Liberty and justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty-and-justice/) [Moral Concepts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-concepts-1002601/) [People talking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-talking/) [Personal liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal-liberty/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) ## Related quotes > [“But as soon as you step outside of Western secular society, you hear people talking in two additional moral languages. 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Iyengar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-k-s-iyengar/) > [“Your body is a temple respect it, and it will bless you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shiamak-davar/your-body-is-a-temple-respect-it-and-it-will-bless-you/) [Shiamak Davar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shiamak-davar/) > [“Your body is a temple. You don’t shit on the temple.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-holden/your-body-is-a-temple-you-don-t-shit-on-the-temple/) [Kim Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-holden/) > [Our body is a machine for living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/our-body-is-a-machine-for-living/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) [Browse all 35 Body is a temple quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-is-a-temple/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The ethic of autonomy is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, autonomous individuals with wants, needs, and preferences. People should be free to satisfy these wants, needs, and preferences as they see fit, and so societies develop moral concepts such as rights, liberty, and justice, which allow people to coexist peacefully without interfering too much in each other’s projects. This is the dominant ethic in individualistic societies. You find it in the writings of utilitarians such as John Stuart Mill and Peter Singer11 (who value justice and rights only to the extent that they increase human welfare), and you find it in the writings of deontologists such as Kant and Kohlberg (who prize justice and rights even in cases where doing so may reduce overall welfare). But as soon as you step outside of Western secular society, you hear people talking in two additional moral languages. The ethic of community is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, members of larger entities such as families, teams, armies, companies, tribes, and nations. These larger entities are more than the sum of the people who compose them; they are real, they matter, and they must be protected. People have an obligation to play their assigned roles in these entities. Many societies therefore develop moral concepts such as duty, hierarchy, respect, reputation, and patriotism. In such societies, the Western insistence that people should design their own lives and pursue their own goals seems selfish and dangerous—a sure way to weaken the social fabric and destroy the institutions and collective entities upon which everyone depends. The ethic of divinity is based on the idea that people are, first and foremost, temporary vessels within which a divine soul has been implanted.12 People are not just animals with an extra serving of consciousness; they are children of God and should behave accordingly. The body is a temple, not a playground. Even if it does no harm and violates nobody’s rights when a man has sex with a chicken carcass, he still shouldn’t do it because it degrades him, dishonors his creator, and violates the sacred order of the universe. Many societies therefore develop moral concepts such as sanctity and sin, purity and pollution, elevation and degradation. 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