Dignity From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dignity#cite_ref-O.27Hara1999_17-1 This article is about dignity as a matter of philosophy, religion, human rights, law and medicine. For other uses, see Dignity (disambiguation). Moral, ethical, legal, and political discussions use the concept of dignity to express the idea that a being has an innate right to be valued, respected, and to receive ethical treatment. In the modern context dignity can function as an extension of the Enlightenment-era concepts of inherent, inalienable rights. English-speakers often use the word "dignity" in proscriptive and cautionary ways: for example in politics it can be used to critique the treatment of oppressed and vulnerable groups and peoples, but it has also been applied to cultures and sub-cultures, to religious beliefs and ideals, to animals used for food or research, and to plants. "Dignity" also has descriptive meanings pertaining to human worth. In general, the term has various functions and meanings depending on how the term is used and on the context.[1] The English word "dignity", attested from the early 13th century, comes from Latin dignitas (worthiness)[2] by way of French dignité.[3] In ordinary modern usage it denotes "respect" and "status", and it is often used to suggest that someone is not receiving a proper degree of respect, or even that they are failing to treat themselves with proper self-respect. There is also a long history of special philosophical use of this term. However, it is rarely defined outright in political, legal, and scientific discussions. International proclamations have thus far left dignity undefined,[4][5] and scientific commentators, such as those arguing against genetic research andalgeny, cite dignity as a reason but are ambiguous about its application.[6] Human dignity can be violated in multiple ways. The main categories of violations are:[7] Humiliation Violations of human dignity in terms of humiliation refer to acts that humiliate or diminish the self-worth of a person or a group. Acts of humiliation are context dependent but we normally have an intuitive understanding where such a violation occurs. As Schachter noted, “it has been generally assumed that a violation of human dignity can be recognized even if the abstract term cannot be defined. ‘I know it when I see it even if I cannot tell you what it is’”.[8] More generally, etymology of the word “humiliation” has a universal characteristic in the sense that in all languages the word involves “downward spatial orientation” in which “something or someone is pushed down and forcefully held there”.[9] This approach is common in judicial decisions where judges refer to violations of human dignity as injuries to people's self-worth or their self-esteem.[10] Instrumentalization or objectification This aspect refer to treating a person as an instrument or as means to achieve some other goal. This approach builds on Emanuel Kant's moral imperative stipulating that we should treat people as ends or goals in themselves, namely as having ultimate moral worth which should not be instrumentalized. Degradation Violations of human dignity as degradation refer to acts that degrade the value of human beings. These are acts that, even if done by consent, convey a message that diminishes the importance or value of all human beings. They consist of practices that human beings should not be subjected to, regardless of whether subjective humiliation is involved, such as selling oneself to slavery, or when a state authority deliberately puts prisoners in inhuman living conditions. Dehumanization These are acts that strip a person or a group of their human characteristics. It may involve describing or treating them as animals or as a lower type of human beings. This has occurred in genocides such as the Holocaust and in Rwanda where the minority were compared to insects. References [1] Shultziner, Doron (2003). "Human Dignity - Functions and Meanings" (PDF).Global Jurist 3 (3): 1–21. Retrieved 8 April 2015. Jump up[2]^ Harper, Douglas (2014). "Online Etymology Dictionary". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 2014-09-22. Jump up[3]^ "Dignity - Define Dignity at Dictionary.com". Dictionary.com. Jump up[4]^ "Those provisions concerning human dignity have not been authoritatively interpreted or applied by any of the competent, independent, international institutions." Bartha Maria Knoppers, Human Dignity and Genetic Heritage: Study Paper (Law Reform Commission of Canada, 1991), note, at 23. None of the international proclamations make dignity the rare quality that some commentators say it should be. Jump up[5]^ Myres S. McDougal, Harold D. Lasswell, and Lung-chu Chen, Human Rights and World Public Order: The Basic Policies of an International Law of Human Dignity(New Haven: Yale UP, 1980), note, at 376. Jump up[6]^ Harees, Lukman (2012). The Mirage of Dignity on the Highways of Human 'progress': - the Bystanders' Perspective -. AuthorHouse. p. 79.ISBN 9781467007733. Retrieved 2014-09-22. Even in recent times, when dignity of the human came into scientific discourses especially in the area of genetic related research, the scientific commentators, such as those arguing against such researches and algeny, cite dignity as a reason but are ambiguous about its application. [Italics in original] [7] Paulus Kaufmann, Hannes Kuch, Christian Neuhäuser, and Elaine Webster (eds.). Humiliation, Degradation, Dehumanization: Human Dignity Violated. Springer.ISBN 9789048196616. Jump up[8]^ Schachter, Oskar (1983). "Human dignity as a normative concept". American Journal of International Law 77: 849. doi:10.2307/2202536. Jump up[9]^ Linder, Evelin (2006). Making enemies: Humiliation and international conflict. Westport, CT: Praeger Security International. p. 5. Jump up[10]^ Shultziner, Doron; Rabinovici, Itai (2012). "Human Dignity, Self-Worth and Humiliation: A Comparative Legal–Psychological Approach". Psychology, Public Policy, and Law 18 (1). doi:10.1037/a0024585.