Blog #4: Round 2 of Research – Does law affect morality?

Topic: How do law and morality impact our lives?

Inquiry Question: Does Law Affect Morality?

When we something wrong, we often suffer guilt and disappointment. When we do the right thing, we feel joy and enjoy the praise we get. The jolt of the moral forces creates a big influence on our conduct.[1] In my previous blog post, I explained the terminology of law and morality, as well as some similarities and differences between the two. Here, on my second round of research, I will be discussing how law and morality, directly and indirectly, impact our lives.

Law and morality work together to control a bigger range of behaviour. [5] Most crimes are not only legally unacceptable but also considered immortal. A good and handy example would be murder. We were all incorporated by the idea of “killing people is wrong and you will be punished by law” from a young age, therefore we don’t do it, we don’t break the law.

Here, a short daily life example: you get out of bed in the morning. Chances are you bought that bed somewhere, so the law of contract that governs sales has something to do with it. The bed must be inside a room, which is probably sitting in a house that’s either rented, coming with law on lease agreements, or owned by property law. You leave the house and go to school. You cross the street, traffic laws are designed to make that a safe environment for you. Normally, you wouldn’t cross it when the red light is lit. Because you were taught at a young age that crossing on a red light is wrong, so you’re morally obliged to not do that. You go to a coffee shop and get breakfast. You would pay for the bagel and coffee you bought because you know that not paying is stealing, it’s illegal; you know because you were also taught at a young age that stealing is wrong, therefore your morals tell you to pay. [3]

In our society, the law controls our social, political and economic life from birth to death. Laws tell us who we can and cannot marry, who takes our money when we die, who can put a swimming pool in our backyard, at what age we can buy certain things, what ingredients we can have in our drinks and much more restrictions. Morality is kind of like our social guideline, it controls much of our social and daily interactions. Keeping our promises and ensuring our children do not make a scene in the supermarket is having a sense of moral. [4]

References:

1. Steven, Shavell. “Law versus Morality as Regulators of Conduct”  11/2001 http://www.law.harvard.edu/programs/olin_center/papers/pdf/340.pdf
2. Georgia L. Stevens. “Laws That Impact Our Lives”  Extension Family Economics Policy Specialist , 1990, https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1365&context=extensionhist
3. How does law affect our everyday life. The Lawyers & Jurists, 2017 https://www.lawyersnjurists.com/article/how-do-law-affects-our-everyday-life/
4. Law and society. Pearson Education, In (2010). https://wps.prenhall.com/ca_ph_blair_law_1/6/1548/396535.cw/index.html
5. JOSEPH RAZ (2018). ABOUT MORALITY AND THE NATURE OF LAW. Retrieved from https://watermark.silverchair.com/ajj-48-1.pdf?token=AQECAHi208BE49Ooan9kkhW_Ercy7Dm3ZL