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{{cquote|If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed.<ref>Albert Einsten</ref>}}
{{cquote|If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed.|||ascribed to [[Albert Einstein]]}}
'''Coerced morality''' is the idea that [[morals]] can spring from some force, either physical or mental. [[Law]] seeks to create a form of coerced morality, in that a citizen will decide to obey the law, not because of their inherent rightness and the value of morality, but for fear of the consequences. Similarly, religious laws are a form of coerced morality if obeyed only for fear of consequences, such as [[Heaven]] or [[Hell]], and not out of personal love for [[God]].
'''Coerced morality''' is the idea that [[morals]] can spring from some force, either physical or mental. [[Law]] seeks to create a form of coerced morality, in that a citizen will decide to obey the law, not because of their inherent rightness and the value of morality, but for fear of the consequences. Similarly, religious laws are a form of coerced morality if obeyed only for fear of consequences, such as [[Heaven]] or [[Hell]], and not out of personal love for [[God]].
Since coerced morality secures obedience merely out of fear or hope, rather than inherent belief in the normative qualities of morality, coerced morality is a secondary tier of ethics, and someone who is good only out of coercion cannot be said to have resolved personal ethical issues. Nonetheless a form of coercive morality has proven necessary to a [[steady state]] society.
Since coerced morality secures obedience merely out of fear or hope, rather than inherent belief in the normative qualities of morality, coerced morality is a secondary tier of ethics, and someone who is good only out of coercion cannot be said to have resolved personal ethical issues. Nonetheless a form of coercive morality has proven necessary to a [[steady state]] society.
[[category:Ethics]]
[[category:Ethics]]