The nature of Dignity

[Milfoil]

Dignity

Is it necessary? What do you feel about the word or the concept?

Today someone made a comment to me: "someone's dignity is not ours to destroy or to gift. It is, in any case, an overrated commodity."

I would love to think about this more deeply since to me, dignity is highly important.

 

[Carla]

What sort of dignity do you mean? The dignity of someone who wants to die before reaching a particular level of incapacitation, or the English-butler kind of dignity? (I mention English butler because the question reminded me instantly of one of my favourite novels: Remains of the Day by Kasuo Ishiguro. Its main character is a butler who wrestles with the nature of dignity throughout his entire life.)

 

[Milfoil]

Well, I guess that hints at the central concept of dignity.

dig·ni·ty   [dig-ni-tee]
noun, plural -ties.
1.
bearing, conduct, or speech indicative of self-respect or appreciation of the formality or gravity of an occasion or situation.
2.
nobility or elevation of character; worthiness: dignity of sentiments.
3.
elevated rank, office, station, etc.
4.
relative standing; rank.
5.
a sign or token of respect: an impertinent question unworthy of the dignity of an answer.

In the case I mentioned the issue was about respect and preserving someone's dignity by dealing with a sensitive issue in private.

 

[BodhiSeed]

This is a timely topic as my daughter just sent in her final exam for English Comp. She had to do an argumentative essay about a nurse's actions in this article:
http://www.darenville.com/pdf/cegep/b2/reading/Crime_and_Plot/A Crime of Compassion.pdf
My daughter was aghast that someone could be shamed for following the wishes of someone who wanted to die with dignity. I definitely don't think it was an "overrated commodity" as your friend stated, especially in the above case.
Dignity gets a bad rap - people often think of it as having no humility. It also gets confused with people's rights, but I don't think that's it either. I suppose its easier to say what it's NOT than what it is. Somehow I think there is a sense of peace and purpose woven together with compassion and respect in it...but even that doesn't seem to sum it up.

 

[tarotbear]

Is there a difference between living a life with dignity and dying with dignity?

 

[Grizabella]

The opposite of dignity, in reality, is humiliation and we don't have the right to humiliate another person no matter how old or how young they are.

 

[BodhiSeed]

Is there a difference between living a life with dignity and dying with dignity?

I think we have more of a choice when it comes to living with dignity; sometimes the choice of dying with dignity can be taken away (no matter what you've signed).

Griz, I agree with you about humiliation.

 

[Debra]

This is a timely topic as my daughter just sent in her final exam for English Comp. She had to do an argumentative essay about a nurse's actions in this article:
http://www.darenville.com/pdf/cegep/b2/reading/Crime_and_Plot/A Crime of Compassion.pdf
My daughter was aghast that someone could be shamed for following the wishes of someone who wanted to die with dignity. I definitely don't think it was an "overrated commodity" as your friend stated, especially in the above case.

"Death with dignity" is a social movement so it carries a different connotation. BodhiSeed's example is an interesting case and I have to wonder if it's true. I suspect exaggeration. Even back then, patients had a right to change doctors. It would not be so difficult to find one who would approve a "do not resuscitate" order for a suffering man.

Today some hospitals don't say DNR--they call it "Let die naturally" instead. People don't want to refuse life-saving treatment because they don't want to be seen as a "quitter." But they may have no objection to letting nature take its course, even though these amount to the same thing.

I think often dignity is just the way people talk about each other. If you talk about people like they're things, if your main goal is to control them or use them or manipulate them so you can sell them something, where's the dignity in that.

How do you deal with people who love to demean others, the ones who see themselves as part of a small club of superior beings? I've never figured out how to respect such people. Also, liars.

ETA: I just looked for that essay on-line to see if I could find out more. Google brings up pages and pages of term paper cheat sites. I wonder how many students had to write about it--and how many just plagiarized off the web. Talk about dignity.

https://www.google.com/webhp?hl=en#....,cf.osb&fp=aaf6f60421662e5e&biw=1331&bih=853

 

[Carla]

I believe dignity is necessary and a basic human right. There are so many instances of people having their dignity stripped of them, particularly in my opinion when it comes to health care.

To me, the word is very hard to explain, but I know when I see the lack of it imposed on other people, because it gives me grievous pangs in my heart. That's the best I can do at expressing my feelings on it.

"Someone's dignity is not ours to destroy or to gift. It is, in any case, an overrated commodity." This sounds a lot like the 'sticks and stones' philosophy. 'Dignity comes from within and no one can take it from you', blah blah. That seems at best unenlightened and at worse callous and immature. I think the way you respond to what life throws at you can be dignified, in that sense we can have 'innate' dignity, but I believe that dignity is a tacit agreement we have with each other as civilized people. There are boundaries we know we shouldn't cross; indignities we should not impose on each other. Wow, I just used the word 'indignity'. See how hard it is to define the word, when to try to express its opposite, you fumble around and come up with the same word. Maybe it's so hard to define because it seems so fundamental to us. It's like trying to define life, or spirit, or mind.

 

[The crowned one]

Dignity is one of those things that comes from within, apart of the intrinsic worth of a human-being. You can take it from someone, but you have to break them first, almost make them non human. Some people can not be broken and have dignity in any circumstance, it may present as poise or you may see it as grace. It is a form of personal honour that you hold yourself to, and through your actions other are aware of it. Dignity may come from within but it is acknowledge and perceived by others, they, strangely enough may judge your dignity.

The flip side of this intrinsic human idea, is us maintaining it for those who can not have it without our help, it is a fundamental right, a level of treatment that all humans deserve.