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Environmental Modesty
Author(s) -
Hartman Laura M.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of religious ethics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.306
H-Index - 20
eISSN - 1467-9795
pISSN - 0384-9694
DOI - 10.1111/jore.12106
Subject(s) - virtue , social psychology , compassion , oppression , perspective (graphical) , power (physics) , psychology , environmental ethics , human sexuality , sociology , epistemology , gender studies , political science , law , philosophy , physics , quantum mechanics , artificial intelligence , politics , computer science
Despite this virtue's history as an instrument of women's oppression, modesty, at its most basic, means voluntary restraint of one's power, undertaken for the sake of others. It is a mechanism that modifies unequal power relationships and encourages greater compassion and fairness. I use a C hristian perspective with influences from J ewish and M uslim sources to examine modesty. The modest person, I argue, must be in relationship with others, must be honestly aware of her impacts on others, must be sensitive to those impacts, compassionate toward others, and willing to hold back for others' sakes. Moreover, modesty is not only a virtue that pertains to sexuality and clothing, but it also can promote virtuous environmental behavior, particularly as it leads to awareness of, and sensitivity to, the effects of everyday behaviors on vulnerable others.