Roger, Platt and all;
Just wanted to throw one more quote on the pile....
ROGER
Morality exists outside of a social/cultural context?
If morality means quality or value ...yes. But if that is what morality
means, then why use the word "morality?
PIRSIG (from PLATT)
Chap. 7: To answer him you have to go all the way back to fundamental
meanings of what is meant by morality and in this culture there aren't
any fundamental meanings of morality. There are only old traditional
social and religious meanings and these don't have any real
intellectual base. They're just traditions. Because Quality is morality.
Make no mistake about it. They're identical. And if Quality is the primary
reality of the world then that means morality is also the primary reality
of the world.
Chap. 13: What is today conventionally called "morality" covers only one
of these sets of moral codes, the social-biological code. In a subject-
object metaphysics this single social-biological code is considered to
be a minor, "subjective," physically nonexistent part of the universe. But
in the Metaphysics of Quality all these sets of morals, plus another
Dynamic morality, are not only real, they are the whole thing.
PIRSIG (from RICK):
"...conventional reason bears it out. The material object of observation
can't be right or wrong. Molecules are molecules. The don't have any
ethical codes to follow except those people give them." (ZAMM chap. 14,
146).
I think Pirsig was closer to the truth in ZAMM when he wrote the quote
above. He has neglected his own advice and assigned ethical codes to
molecules (and eveything else in the universe) via the MoQ. Accepting the
above means rejecting at least the Inorganic level of the MoQ and at most
the entire Quality=Morality equation (and thus the whole MoQ). Bodvar (and
possibly even Pirsig himself) have dismissed much of ZAMM's philosophy as
"abortive" or "experimental"... despite this, I still think Pirsig got it
right the first time. After all...
"...beginners are usually quicker than experts..." (LILA chap. 9,138).
Rick
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