BETWEEN MORALITY AND COGNITION
p We have thus come to the conclusion that choice and the implementation of ends are primarily dependent upon knowledge in that it renders possible the distinction between real and unreal ends. In addition knowledge permits consideration of the conditions within which an action is to be carried out. The direct transition to activity depends upon will, which may be amplified by the pertinent knowledge or, on the other hand, attenuated by’lack of certainty brougnt on by insufficient or unreliable information. Next comes the ability to act: here the role of knowledge is obvious. Finally, the result is the apprehension of the outcome and consequences of the deed. The final moment must not be isolated from morality. The deed completed by the individual represents not only that which he wanted or did not want to do, but also that which in actuality took place and which thereby has its own properties and consequences quite independent of the individual’s intentions. It is precisely in this, its objective state that the deed is presented to other individuals. The act of cognition, finalizing action, is essential for morality. Its importance is underscored by that significance given to conscience as the ability of the individual to evaluate the results of his own actions.
p As matters stand, although individual intentions are directed at the achievement of results (otherwise they would be devoid of sense), between intentions and results there may often exist less than full correspondence. This real contradiction is resolved when one, having ascertained the lack of correspondence between intentions and ends, endeavours to explore the conditions and methods which could ensure the necessary correspondence, or to alter the ends themselves once convinced that the original ends have proven unattainable. The sequence of activity outlined above is not always feasible for the individual in question, but it may be for others who may rely on the experience of their predecessors.
p The process of cognition is carried out in precisely this manner, the individual becomes aware of the result of his action and the latter is assimilated; if the necessity arises further research is conducted, the results of which are also assimilated and, together with the preceding experience, are taken into consideration in praxis. Cognition, uncovering possibilities unknown at an earlier date, engenders new ends, desires and intentions, and provides incentive for further 39 activity. The latter brings to the fore new tasks, and the process continues. The contradiction between goals and results does not disappear, but is renewed in each instance at a higher stage. This contradiction is in fact the driving force impelling cognition. Indeed would there exist a necessity for cognition if all human desires were satisfied, all intentions met and ends attained?
p The same applies in the case of morality; given a lack of correlation between results and intentions the individual endeavours to correct the situation, draws out’lessons for the future or even alters his goals and principles if he perceives them to be unreal or leading to undesirable consequences. In a word, the individual comes to know the world and draws in the process the corresponding moral lessons.
p Thus, the contradiction between the evaluation of a deed differentially in terms of intent and consequence is resolved by the development of morality proper. But such a resolution entails the renewal of the very same contradiction at a higher stage. New moral intentions, just as earlier ones, are not realized in toto, goals are not achieved in one fell swoop, and the search for better paths continues. Stagnant, immobile and dogmatized morality no longer takes the consequences of its application into its purview, no longer takes life into account and thus ceases to be a real morality. Rather it remains a relic of the phenomenon of cognition.
p Returning to the question of the moral evaluation of the deed, we may conclude that it is necessary to make an evaluation of intent, but with the necessary stipulation that one takes into account to what extent the individual came to grips with objective reality in his intentions and in the actual implementation of the latter. To what extent did he assess the reality of his goals and plans? To what extent the results and effects? Repentance in trie event of deplorable results must be accompanied by the gleaning of lessons from this experience and by the search for better solutions. This is the requirement of the reasonable conscience, which needs not only agony but also perfection. This is the negation of moral complacency and the affirmation of an unceasing search for the better. Authentic morality exists only in a state of development. The latter is stimulated, on the one hand, by a relentlessly changing objective reality and on the other hand, by a persistent lack of fit between results and goals, overcome through the process of cognition. Morality, initiated by knowledge and growing in pace with the latter, is in a state of constant transition from the delineation of knowledge to moral imperatives, from these 40 imperatives to action, and from action once again to knowledge....
Contributing with knowledge both to external circumstances and to his own life, man determines the moral path.
Notes