I like this idea- a time line of morality perhaps! This would be a great collaborative writing project and it would be great source (given references) for any one who wants to write about or review the subjectivity (or lack of) and development of right and wrong.

I'll get you started with a time line of human rights, which will have a lot of tid bits to be extracted- Human Rights Timeline
also a time line philosophy books which will help, Philosophy - Timeline Index

If you'd be interested I'd help collaborate with you in Google Docs, make a time line template (either spread sheet or text doc) and then invite me to collaborate (danbuddle[at]googlemail[dot]com) and I'll skim through those resources I posted and look for some more. I think it would mane an invaluable .pdf to base some writing on.

Dan.

I'll need a template so I'll make sure to go to you once I've got all the data. Thanks

The premise that our morality has developed because of seminal events and specific dates is probably the complete opposite of the truth. These major events and figures in history were largely symptoms of our moral and cultural development rather than causes.

Yeah I know. So I'll keep in mind when I analyze the 'symptons' to come up with what caused them, being the morals of humanity. But what do you mean by the complete opposite of the truth?

Significant events may have historical importance, but they cannot explain the moral development of humanity. The Spanish Inquisition in 1492, for instance, was a symptom of the racial antisemitism that had been developing in Christian Spain for generations, and it was largely a prejudicial reaction to Jews who had converted to Christianity. So even though the Inquisition is a major historical event, it doesn't explain anything -- it was just a culmination of preexisting currents in popular thought. Frankly the Holocaust was as well. But the prejudices in popular thought are a lot more complicated than you can glean just by extrapolating back from these major events. Before the Holocaust, for instance, there was FAR more violence against Jews in Russia than in Germany. So I think you're not going to learn much about our moral development by looking at events. You need to find sources that reveal what people thought.

Like diaries, or journals?

Also, let me guess.. You've tried doing something like this before.

Also the date any text is written which expresses an idea or development of ethics would be good. A culmination of all would be very interesting, including events, whether they are symptomatic or not, because I think they show how the public adjusts to new ethical ideas and changes. Perhaps even what becomes 'acceptable' to the masses, because is this not what counts for the most part?

Dan

If this were to be done you would have to do an areal geographic time line per "moral". For example "women's rights" or at least nominal political equality for women and men. You couldn't just say 1918, women got the right to vote. as the right to vote is an event not a moral. It is a symptom of the larger equality movement, however there have been many cultures and societies where women are on equal or advantageous political footing with men. So a time line as such would be geographical area shaded in with a relative date. Something like This Imperial History of the Middle East.

If one were to try and time line moral history other wise it would look like this

All Morals 75K-5oK B.C.---------------------------------------------Now

U kind found this a little broad, and I don't see too many dates, so mine as well put down my initial thoughts.

As soon as I read this, I thought of the Last and First Men, a science fiction novel by Olaf Stapleton.

When speaking of the only two, true, and meaningful prohets to humanity, he stated that Socrates and Jesus were these people.

Although many may argue the validity of that statement, and it was indeed written as part of a ficticious work, I still believe it calls to light two very important, and influential people since the birth of western civilization.

Benjamin Franklin for his work in electricity?

Events?

The Elightenment period that forged a modern democratic ethos?

The fall of Rome?


As for earlier and more basic events, I would imagine the extinction/assimilation of Neandertals would be fairly important, being it made Homo Sapien the dominant bipedal mammal on earth.

I don't want to go any farther back than 5000 BCE unless they are very broad statements.