Language as an Object of Ethical Reflection. A Turn Towards the Attitude of Taking Responsibility for Words

Abstract

The article focuses on the category of taking responsibility for words, which is explicated as both a component of the moral awareness of language users and a socially desirable attitude that promotes the building of a communication community. The above category was analysed in view of legal regulations and, most importantly, theoretical findings from the field of communication ethics. The author used the conceptual apparatus of this theory to determine the way in which responsibility for words can be formed in axiological education. It was defined by referring to the primacy of respect for the values such as human dignity, freedom and truth understood as the opposite of falsehood. The author concluded that the attitude of taking responsibility for words should be formed through the transmission of knowledge regarding these values, assuming that they can be “experienced” relative to examples of the negative use and abuse of language as opposed to its responsible use. Therefore, this article presents general criteria for the ethical evaluation of communication facts, indicating how they should be used for the purpose of forming the attitude that involves responding with will to the discussed values.