Human Dignity Through Assuming Obligations: A Civic Virtue Approach

Abstract

We typically think of preserving human dignity through the development and enforcement of rights, but the declaration Dignitas Infinita also includes the intriguing possibility that human dignity is fostered through exercising a capacity to assume obligations. The article develops this idea and argues for a civic virtue approach of prudential judgment between the extremes of illegitimate usurping of authority and dereliction of duty. The discussion helps show that the preservation of human dignity also involves engagement with the norms and laws that help a political community determine appropriate obligations of office, as these, together with a general disposition to take-on responsibility, are part of what it means to manifest human dignity.