Morality is the adherence of an idea or an act to the principles of morality . The term comes from the Latin word moralĭtas .
Before moving forward, it is important to define what morality is. This is what is called that associated with the actions of an individual by virtue of their link with evil or good . A good action is in accordance with the norms of morality; A bad action, on the other hand, is contrary to its precepts.
It can be stated, therefore, that morality is given by adherence to moral commands . The morality of an artistic work, in this framework, is found in the harmony of the work in question with the moral norms of a society .
The idea of morality is also used to refer to the set of moral rules of a community , a time or even a person. For example: "The morality of a people is seen in times of crisis, when thousands of people depend on solidarity to survive" , "In this government morality is absent" , "I am not willing to do business with someone without morality" .
Let's look at this concept from the point of view of psychology. Every day, our lives are conditioned by countless decisions of varying importance, which lead us down an unpredictable path. Although our personality dictates the preponderance of certain attitudes, we are not safe from surprise, since a seemingly insignificant action can considerably alter our course.
Ethics is one of the axes of these decisions, which constantly position us in "the balance of good and evil" since our childhood. This happens because morality develops throughout the first years, from a series of ideals or principles that not only guide us towards the good but also give us a feeling of satisfaction if we achieve it, and a feeling of frustration if we do. we ignore
Morality depends on the process known as internalization , which consists of adopting the norms that we observe in the people around us to make them our own. The importance of the first years of life in the development of these concepts is such that it never hurts to remember it: raising good people is as easy as it is difficult, but we surely have a much better chance of success if we give them good examples.
According to Sigmund Freud , until the age at which we begin to walk we still do not have the superego , the moral instance of our mind ; For this reason, we act selfishly, moved by our impulses, unless our elders control our behavior. When the superego finally appears, it begins to question our decisions and actions, causing us the sensations mentioned above depending on whether we act well or badly.
The emergence of the superego takes place in the phallic stage, which is characterized because the partial drives are unified under the dominance of the genital organs, after the Oedipus or Electra complex. At this point in his growth, the child acquires the moral values of the adult he takes as a reference.
In the field of theater , a morality is a type of allegory in which the main character encounters personifications of different moral properties who seek to guide him to follow the correct path in his life. Moralities were common between the 15th and 16th centuries .
The Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ), finally, points out that morality can be used as a synonym for morality : the teaching that emerges from a fable, a story or another type of narrative.