道德情感:本质、类别与意义

Moral Emotion:The Essence,Category and Significance

道德情感是伦理学与德育学研究绕不开的问题。人有多种多样的情感,为什么有些情感可以冠以“道德的”?研究者从情感的利他性、情感对象的性质、情感与道德行为的关系等多种角度进行了探索,但很多内在矛盾依然未能得到解决。文章将道德情感理解为对善恶问题的好恶反应与态度。在不同道德处境下,作为道德主体的样态也是不同的。在不同主体样态下,对善恶的好恶反应与态度则呈现出不同的性质、类型。在不同主体样态下,也可能存在着性质各异的反道德情感。根据道德情感是对善恶的好恶反应与态度这一定位,可以把道德情感分为“赞善”(赞人赞己)的情感,包括崇敬、感恩、自豪、勇气等;“责恶”(责人责己)的道德情感,包括愤怒、恶心、蔑视、愧疚、羞耻、后悔等;混合性(赞责混合)道德情感,包括同情、宽容、关爱等。道德情感的意义在于其既是道德之端,具有激发、强化道德行动,预防、阻止不道德行动,改正错误、补救过失等作用,自身又可以沉淀、发展成为道德情操与道德德性。

Moral emotion is an inevitable topic in the study of ethics and moral education.Human beings have a variety of feelings and emotions.Why can some of them be labeled as“moral”?Though researcher have made explorations into the altruism of emotion,the nature of emotional objects,and the relationship between emotion and moral behavior,many internal contradictions have not been resolved.This paper seeks to take moral emotion as a positive-negative response and attitude to the problem of good and evil.In different moral situations,our behaviors and modes as the main body of morality are diverse.Among different subjects,our positive-negative responses and attitudes towards good and evil show multiple natures and types.There may also be different kinds of anti-moral emotions among different moral subjects.Following the conception that moral emotion is our positive-negative response and attitude towards good and evil,moral emotion can be divided into“praising goodness”(praise others and oneself),including reverence,gratitude,pride,courage and so on,“blaming wickedness”(blame others and oneself),involving anger,nausea,contempt,guilt,shame,regret and so on,and“mixed moral feelings”,the combination of praise and blame,embodying sympathy,tolerance,care and so on.The significance of moral emotion lies in that it not only is the cornerstone of morality,having the functions of stimulating and strengthening moral action,preventing immoral action,and resolving mistakes and remedying faults,but it also can develop into moral sentiment and virtue.