Gilligan’s Perception of Morality in An American Story :: American Story Essays

Gilligans Perception of Morality in An American StoryThough individuals live by and react similarly to various situations, non all people have the same righteouss. I can relate to instances where I have supported a belief, regardless of the criticisms that arise, all because my choice is ground upon personal morals. The same can be said regarding Debra J. Dickerson as she expresses in her novel, An American Story. In Carol Gilligans Concepts of Self and Morality, she states, The moral person is whizz who helps others goodness in service, meeting hotshots obligations and responsibilities to others, if possible without sacrificing oneself (170). After considering this statement, I strongly feel that Gilligans proposal lacks the depth to accurately measure up the moral person, but I am able to accept the argument raised by Joan Didion. Her essay entitled, On Morality, clearly provides a more oblige and acceptable statement in describing the moral person by saying, I followed my own conscience, I did what I thought was right (181). Joan Didions proposal is comminuted and acceptable. It is obvious that as long as people follow what they believe is the right thing to do, and approach the situation maturely, their actions can be considered examples of morality, and they can therefore be considered moral human beings. A moral person goes beyond the phrase, without sacrificing oneself, provided by Gilligan in her essay. This is clear by looking back at a specific example. I can recall a time when an entire class of mine decided to play a trick on a teacher in high school. They planned on manipulating her by telling lies in regard to what she had assigned and made her feel embarrassed. I wanted non to be part of these hurtful actions, so rather than tagging along as most of the other students, I did something about it. I stood my ground and as the students told one lie after another, I raised my hand and made her aware of the prank that was being executed. T hough everyone looked upon me as the one who spoiled everything, the simple intercommunicate of raising my hand revealed my morals to the class. At the time, I followed my conscience and followed through with what I thought was right, whether others agreed with me or not. This clearly supports and exemplifies Didons explanation of the moral person.