0.2 Values from Each Knowledge Domain

Version 1.1 March 2013                                                    Previous Version

How we respond to the issues we face depends on what we believe and what we value most.

In these pages we show how we can work out what values are reasonable, and whether we can reasonably justify holding these values.  We base our values on the reasonable beliefs we can arrive at in all of the domains of knowledge, which clarify what value choices are open to us.

We break down all of knowledge into the following domains.  Our global beliefs are covered in seven Parts, one for each domain, plus Part 8 which ties it all together.

Analysis:	1. Philosophy, 2. Science and 3. History.	Is it reasonable to break down all our relevant knowledge into these seven domains? Click on feedback, or add a comment below, to tell us what you think, or suggest improvements.
Expression:	4. Religion and 5. Culture.
Action:	6. Personal Practice and 7. Politics.

Many people are confused about where our values come from.  Many religious people think values come from God.  Some atheists would like to use science to somehow extract values.  Some philosophers argue there is no objective basis for any values.  Some (such as Anwar Ibrahim) say that the works of Shakespeare are all we need to determine values.  They are all misguided. 

Values come from within, from the choices we make.  They may align with our natural inclinations, but our values are chosen by us.  And we should, and can, justify our choices. 

We discuss that our choices reflect our values, and vice versa, particularly in Chapter 6.1.  This introduction outlines how our study of each knowledge domain impacts on our value choices.

●   Our core values primarily come from our philosophy, or are part of our philosophy, the path we choose to follow.  Core values are the outcomes of our core choices.

Derived values are alternative ways of phrasing our core values, derived from the meanings of the words, but not in any way secondary to core values.

●   Science and history don't provide core values, but help us to work out how to make the best choices to put into effect our core values, so that our actions support what we most value.

The effecting values we learn from science and history are secondary to core values.  New evidence or insights may come to light that shows we need to revise our effecting values, because they no longer support our core values.  We learn from experience.

●   Religion, despite what many people think, is not the source of our values but provides ways to express and communicate them, in narratives, parables, rituals, liturgy, and so on. 

●   Culture, media and the arts also explore ways to express our values, and they strongly influence what we value, but they don’t actually provide core values. 

●   The rules and guidelines we adopt in our personal practice reflect the core values from our philosophy, derived values, and effecting values from science and history.  Our political action reflects our personal values as we act in the wider community.

In the detailed sections we look at what values we get from each of these domains.