A healthy approach to autonomy: stemming the decline of ethics.

Abstract

If the importance of ethics is declining, we need to reflect on our values, our ethical "quality of life," and our hopes for the future. Are our personal dreams of health realistic? When it comes to improving collective health, have we defined not simply our rights but also our duties? The fabric of our society is permeated with the threads of individualism, manifested in the desire to have one's cake and eat it too. Claims for absolute individual autonomy are often justified with reference to charters of rights and freedoms. Is there an alternative way of thinking that can help us change this model? We must regard autonomy as an ambitious project of solidarity and responsibility, something that is not focussed on self but is rather open to others. Without a healthy approach to autonomy, the sense of ethics that is so crucial in our modern world will weaken and decline.