The Ending is only the Beginning….

Over the past fourteen to fifteen weeks, I departed on a personal journey to discover my own definition of human dignity.  I was not alone in this journey called Revealing Human Dignity.  This journey encompassed the explaining of factors that contribute to different interpretations of human dignity around the world, the meaning and use of respect as an essential characteristic, and my self-worth through interpersonal relationships.  Hence, these are the major pieces of the content that I took with me to solve the great mysterious puzzle of human dignity.



My journey.  The road is long and dangerous.  There is not much to look around. 
We started with no defnition and ended with wealth of knowledge. 



The first time I heard the word human dignity, I was like “Oh I know what that is, no worries.”  However, when someone asks you, “What does it mean to you, and how do you define it?” well that made the uncertainties appear because I had no idea.  There is no formal definition of human dignity, it is only our interpretations and the theories that we can relate to it. 

Hence, nearing the end of this class I can truly say that I have my interpretation for the definition of human dignity, but then I can also say that my definition will always be changing.  Human dignity is constant, but moves at the same time.  It is as if we can never catch up to it.  We will always behind it because we can never be in front of it or with it.  Maybe it is just the way the world is, we were never meant to fully understand human dignity, but always strive for it.  Therefore, I feel the name of my journey has changed.  I am not revealing human dignity, I am revealing myself.  I am discovering who I am in this world, and how my beliefs and morals form my dignity and the dignity of others.  Human dignity is intangible and irreplaceable.

Human Dignity?  It is intangable, but you know it is there.
Just like the clouds and the sky. If everyone has a sky above them,
then maybe that means everybody has human dignity. 

Additionally, the theorist Kant has been a major contributor to facilitating my thoughts on the various topics that I have discussed about human dignity.  For instance, a good will is one that acts in accordance with rationally-determined duty.  No character trait or consequence is good in itself.  However, as good is defined in terms of rationality, Kant argued that all rational beings were ends in themselves and should never be treated purely as a means to an end.  This moral philosophy assisted me in finding the aspects to understanding of human dignity around the world, and the significance of respect and self-worth through relationships. 

Overall, I have a sense of myself.  Can you say the same about you?  Has this affected you in anyway?  Are you able to come up with your own definition of human dignity?  Yes, no, maybe, an answer does not matter because we are humans and we will always have our dignity.  There may be times that it feels as if we have none or too much.  Nevertheless, this is who we are.  We need to love and respect ourselves, and take these emotions to every single person around us.  Human dignity is never ending because we were born this way.



We are all humans and born this way. 
Human dignity is a part of us, and we will always be a part of it.
What is dignity with humanity?  

Thank you