I cannot agree with those who rank modesty among the virtues. To the logician all things should be seen exactly as they are, and to underestimate one’s self is as much a departure from truth as to exaggerate one’s own powers.”
–Sherlock Holmes “The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter
Although I was raised in a culture which ranks humility as a virtue, I never understood why it is a virtue, let alone possessed it. Ever since childhood, I’ve been encouraged by my parents, both scientists, to dare to question authority and to independently verify things. On the one hand, humility is inherent in the natural sciences, for the work of every scientist is measured against an objective standard, and no one is above the law (of nature); on the other hand, humility is irrelevant, for a scientific theory can be either corroborated or contradicted by experiments and observations, which has no causal relation to the personal virtues, or lack thereof, of the scientist who proposed it.
Humility and Belief
Perhaps my upbringing with this belief in (the pursuit of) objective truth makes it difficult for me to relate to people who argue that any claim of objective truth is driven by arrogance.
Six months ago, I had an online discussion with someone who felt it necessary to “push back” against “Christian privilege”, which he defined as “the presumption, often unconscious, that their particular perspectives, values and beliefs are superior”. Ironically, everyone, including the most vocal critics of Christianity, have the same “privilege”. For why would any rational being hold any particular belief if he doesn’t think it is superior in some way to the alternatives?
Personally, I’ve learned much from people with different perspectives. I’m grateful that my intellectual life has been greatly enriched by other minds. One of the reasons I blog and participate in online discussions is to learn, and to contribute (if I may be so presumptuous) to our common intellectual heritage.
Humility vs. Tyranny in Public Discourse
Humility is acknowledging an objective standard of truth independent of oneself. It is not enough to concede that one can be wrong. Humility must acknowledge and faithfully follow the processes through which one can be corrected. To borrow a Biblical metaphor, humility must be tested by fire like gold in a furnace.
In a society like ours and ancient Greece, the furnace for humility is rational public discourse. As Socrates exemplified in his own life, an un-cross-examined belief is not worth holding. To engage in rational discourse is to exercise self-control, to hold oneself accountable to objective rules of logic and reason. As in Plato’s Chariot metaphor, reason is the charioteer who holds in check two winged horses, appetite and passion. By contrast, tyranny is essentially self-authority, viz. not holding oneself accountable to the law of society, and the law of reason, but being constantly driven hither and thither by one’s own passion and appetite.
In public discourse, humility and tyranny manifest themselves as constructive vs. destructive criticisms. Constructive criticism respects the other person as an autonomous and rational being, capable of thinking for himself and making his own decisions. It engages primarily with the arguments and evidence presented, and endeavours to identify rooms for improvement. Destructive criticism is characterized by pejorative labels, and aims to intimidate, demean, overwhelm, and ultimately to dominate the target. It is akin to tyranny, because it is an unjust and oppressive use of power. People are not treated as autonomous beings but as slaves, not allowed to think for themselves, but forced to accept and abide by the views of others.
Destructive criticism is only one among many symptoms of what Augustine calls “lust of dominion”. By contrast, “the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield”.
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