The Scourge of Virtue Signaling
A dark substitute for legitimate virtue
Why has virtue signaling become so ubiquitous over the past four or five years? The answer to this requires an understanding of virtue itself.
Webster’s New International Dictionary defines ‘virtue’ as: Moral practice or action; conformity to the standard of right; moral excellence; integrity of character; uprightness of conduct; rectitude. Examples are the virtue of temperance, charity, etc.
We all have a gap between who we are and who we ought to be. Sometimes the gap seems like a great chasm that’s insurmountable. But, the hard journey to close this dissonance is well worth the agony because it leads to fulfillment, nobility, and inner peace. The labor required bears the sweetest fruit — virtue.
Virtues are goods of character that one must strive to develop and cultivate. It takes hard work and not a little time to develop them. To do so requires that we gain control over our passions — those personal tendencies that hinder us from improving ourselves. In other words, we must consciously identify our shortcomings and root them out to make room for things like the four cardinal virtues of temperance (moderation/self-control), justice, prudence (wisdom), and fortitude (courage).
Mastering one’s passions and deliberately cultivating virtue takes a lifetime of striving for the good, the true, and the beautiful.
Signaling to the void
Virtue signaling eschews all of this interior work and taking responsibility for shortcomings in character and out of control passions. People who refuse to put in the work distort the correct understanding of virtue. Instead, they see virtue as having the ‘right’ stance on a given cause, which is more aptly termed ‘the current thing’.
The people of ‘the current thing’ trumpet their beliefs and actions toward the cause loudly and sometimes (often?) with violence and gnashing of teeth.
Orange man bad!
My body my choice!
Wear the damn mask!
Social distance, you granny killer!
Take the shot!
Antivaxxers deserve death!
Ukraine!
Pronouns
…and on and on and on.
It’s as if conformity to a narrative has morphed into a ‘new morality’ standard — one in which the highest bar is ostentatiously and publicly supporting the ‘current thing.’ Adherents prove their rabid blind loyalty and support by posting pictures of themselves doing said thing, placing a yard sign with sayings that support the ‘thing’, yelling at any obvious non-conforming people, and the list goes on.
Don’t want to give your kid an experimental gene therapy injection? You’re evil and selfish.
Didn’t take the injection yourself? You must be ostracized and not allowed to participate in social activities alongside the selfless, tolerant narrative pushers.
Fruits of incivility and intemperance
Underneath the wan smile of the supposedly tolerant virtue signaler is a layer bitterness and anger. Not doing the real and very difficult work of personal improvement bears the deformed fruit of victimhood and bitterness. It’s sad — tragic really.
It’s destroying our culture and creating an environment that’s actually hostile to the justice they claim to seek. I don’t pretend to know what the answer is or how to fix it. When I look at the whole of society, the ubiquitousness of the ‘woke life’ is overwhelming. There’s no easy way out.
My conclusion is that we each begin with ourselves and do the daily work required to cultivate the highest version of ourselves. We can also teach our children the beauty of these characteristics through example, stories, and good (probably older) movies. In summary, healing our world begins at home within our families and radiating out to others close to us.
“Virtues are the good habits which perfect man’s powers in the pursuit of truth and goodness.” ~ Walter Farrell, OP, STM and Martin J Healy, STD, My Way of Life: The Summa Simplified for Everyone
I have a question for you, my readers: Do you think there will be a negative consequence as a result of the rampant virtue signaling in our society? If so, what might it look like?
New offering: Commission an article
My favorite SJW line is 'science is real' and the variants.
They also believe:
- cloth mask stops covaids
- men can get preggers
- elections and vaxxes are totally safe and legitimous
What a wonderful discourse on what constitutes genuine virtue... as opposed to that which constitutes the plastic signaling masquerading as virtue. In our "fast food" society we now embraces and glorify whatever mind-styles/lifestyles that are currently in vogue; and as a result our society stoops constantly lower in order to justify and dignify all manner of falsehoods. What could go wrong?... or to answer your question more succinctly... perhaps the consequence will be the vilification of genuine virtue... coming soon to a neighborhood near you.