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Dominick Graziano has degrees in biology, philosophy and law. He is a member of the Florida Bar, and is Of Counsel with the firm of Bush Graziano Rice & Platter, P.A., www.bgrplaw.com.

Thursday, August 24, 2017

Honor: A virtue, or the prize of virtue?

Virtue Crowning Honor by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, 1734

          At some point, almost everyone ‘who shows up’ receives an honor. Recognition begins in pre-K and ends with a eulogy. But when are we deserving of honor? Is it ok to seek honors? Let’s examine these questions further as we listen in on Marcus and his students:

“The greatest way to live with honor in this world, is to be what we pretend to be.” - Socrates

Elizabeth: “Marcus, congratulations I see your peers have honored you once again.”

Audrey: “Yes, Marcus another accolade demonstrating that you are highly prized as a good lawyer.”

Marcus: “Thank you, but I'm never quite sure that honors awarded by your peers mean anything more than you have been around a long time, or are merely popular. I plead guilty to the former, but not the latter.”

Jacob: “It sounds like after 30 years of practice, you take these honors for granted, but as young lawyers we strive for them. Even though we don’t have gray hair, we still want recognition that we are good at our craft.”

Marcus: “Some of those honors I received are more well-deserved than others, Jacob. Aristotle argued that properly obtained honors demonstrate that we have achieved certain virtues, for example, courage or magnificence. Therefore, seeking awards or honors can be a motivating force to live a morally upright life. It is as Aristotle would say a 'gift of the virtues'.”

Maureen: “I'm not sure I agree with you there, Marcus, it sounds as if the virtue of honor can merely be reduced to seeking fame or awards. Aren't honor and fame two sides of the same coin?”

Marcus: “'Honor' is a small word, that historically carries many burdens. Sometimes it is joined at the hip with 'fame,' but if honor is recognized as a virtue, and fame is not, then it should protect us from seeking earthly goods like money, leadership positions or power. Let me give you an example. General George C. Marshall was a man who refused to lobby for himself. It was not in his character. When President Roosevelt asked him directly, more than once, if he wanted to command the D-Day invasion during World War II, a role he relished and was qualified for, he could only answer that it was the President's decision.[1]
General Marshall earned many honors during his life, but would never seek them out, and certainly not ask for them. So President Roosevelt famously gave the position to General Eisenhower who went on to achieve both fame and honor. There are probably few men more honorable in American history than General Marshall, but too few today remember him;, while everyone has heard of  Eisenhower. According to Aristotle, honor is the object of two virtues, ambition and high-mindedness. General Marshall was certainly high-minded, but was not ambitious enough to seek command of the D-Day invasion. Ambition directed by virtue motivates us to do good and by happenstance that might lead to fame. So sometimes fame accompanies honor, but they are not always two sides of the same coin.”

Elizabeth: “So is it correct to say that Aristotle thought proper ambition can be a motivating force moving us towards virtuous action, thereby rendering us more worthy of honors?”

Marcus – “I think that's the way Aristotle would view it. He said that the virtuous seek "only honors that are great and that are conferred by good men...but honor from casual people and on trifling grounds, [the proud man] will utterly despise, since it is not this that he deserves."[2] In this regard he is similar to Plato, who believed that virtue is an indispensable ingredient of happiness and he included honor amongst those "good things." The virtuous man will seek honor in the right way.

Maureen: “But the type of honor we are talking about can only be awarded by others, and therefore, I don't see how it can be a virtue. It is something for which we have very little, if any control over.”

Audrey: “I think Maureen makes a good point, Marcus. I think it's possible to live an honorable life, but never have honors bestowed upon you. That does not mean you are not worthy of honors, but for whatever reason have just never been recognized for them. Not everyone can receive awards, otherwise they become meaningless, but everyone can live a life deserving of honor.”

Jacob: “Yes, we all know of circumstances where an honor is bestowed upon someone who is not deserving of it, and many who are deserving of such honors never receive them. Not all honors are distributed fairly.”

Elizabeth: “Nonetheless, as a self-governing profession lawyers are motivated to act ethically, because we know that our failure to do so can result in negative reviews by colleagues and peers, or even disciplinary action. In this way, we seek respect, which is a type of honor.”

Marcus: “Whether you are awarded honors by your peers or not, remember that public honors can often be misplaced or even wrongly withheld. However, that should never dissuade you from doing what is honorable, which might also include seeking worthy honors from your peers. ”

Elizabeth: “So Marcus, are you worthy of the most recent award from your peers.”

Marcus: “I will let the peers speak for themselves.”

“Confidence… thrives on honesty, on honor, on the sacredness of obligation, on faithful protection and on unselfish performance. Without them it cannot live.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

        To be confident, you have to understand the honors bestowed upon you. Upon thoughtful examination, each person knows whether they are worthy of an honor. To have an honorable career, that is being worthy of honors in your profession, you must recognize that some honors we receive are not truly earned or are better bestowed upon another. We all know it would be honorable to reject a reward of honor by stating a truth. This would require courage, proper ambition, truthfulness, proper shame, righteous indignation, and almost all of Aristotle’s 12 virtues.  This is the point of honor. Honors should only be bestowed upon and enjoyed by the virtuous. Next time someone gives you an honor or pays you a compliment for your work, be sure to give credit where credit is due, even if that means proper recognition of yourself.





[1] As recounted by David Brooks in 'The Road to Character'
[2] Aristotle, The Nichomachaen Ethics, Chapter 3