Essay
Virtue ethics - Assignment 5 SUS1501 - Accomplish eudaimonia
- Institution
- University Of South Africa (Unisa)
Personal essay of how to achieve the ultimate good as a human being using key virtues.
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Assignment 05SUS1501 – Sustainability and Greed
1. BACKGROUND FACTS
“In the 2018/2019 financial year, Bob van Dijk, the CEO of Naspers earned a total
remuneration (salary, incentives and options) of R 1.9 billion.”
“60% of the world’s cobalt is mined in the DRC. Significant amounts of this is mined
under appalling conditions often by child labourers.”
“Of the top 10 wealthiest people (all men), seven are tech billionaires. Their net worth is
US$ 847 billion or ZAR 13 trillion!”
2. INTRODUCTION (written for me by Prof Eccles)
In assignments 2, 3 and 4 we have, as a group, reflected on the facts above. We debated whether it was
okay for Bob van Dijk to earn ZAR 1.9 billion in a single year. Some of us thought this was a reflection of
a job done excellently. Some of us thought that this was morally outrageous.
We debated the issue children working in appalling conditions in cobalt mines in the DRC. Although
most of us thought that this was a problem, we saw how other ethical interpretations were possible.
And in the final analysis we considered the possibility that these two scenarios – great wealth and great
poverty – might in fact be linked. On the basis of this, we debated whether the whole picture looked
okay. I think it is safe to say that most of us were left feeling a bit uneasy about things.
That is all well and good. But what about me? In this short essay, I’m going to think about this question.
I’ll start out by trying to figure out where I currently fit in in this picture. Then I’m going to think forward
in time. Specifically I’m going to imagine what I hope my legacy will have been over the course of the
good (eudaimonic) life I have lived. In formulating this vision of a life well lived, I’m going to make
reference to key virtues or excellences (arête) that I think I will need to develop in order to achieve this
good life. And I’m going to think about the sort of problems that these excellences might present if
taken too far or not far enough.
3. WHERE DO I FIT IN NOW? (897 words)
Evaluating my place in the economic landscape according to the site
https://www.saldru.uct.ac.za/income-comparison-tool/ I was shocked with the final results.
When I entered our household’s monthly income into the income comparison scale, my first
guess was that we would lie somewhere between 20% of the poorest families at first.
Shockingly the internet site confirmed that our household’s income is above 82% of the
economic scale of revenue, which means 81% of families are on a lower income level than we
(our household) are currently experiencing.
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, As a small household of two people, my mom and myself, we are not living in wealth AT ALL.
The scale comparison made me think A LOT.
Thinking of our personal situation, we face many challenges monthly. We have a combined
income and still struggle daily - giving our last cents to put food on the table. Without the help
of others, we would not be able to survive.
So a brief insight into my life: After completing school, and during my school years, I was
required to go to work. Not forced by anyone, of course, but just like the DRC Children, I felt
obligated to help my mother, who was struggling year in and year out alone.
To complete this story, I believe a short history is needed of why I feel the way I feel.
We were a family of 6, my two parents, my three siblings, and myself. We grew up privileged
where my dad and mom were both working in the De Beers mines. My mom was not educated
at the time, but my dad was (or so we thought). After a few years, my dad was fired for forged
documentation. My mom kept her job as the receptionist, and I was the only one who stayed
behind with her. But after few years, the mine was closed, and we had to move. At the time, my
father was a truck driver who had to raise 3 children. Luckily my mom got a job again as a farm
receptionist, and we all moved into this big broken-down farmhouse in the middle of nowhere.
My dad disappeared to planet B after maximizing every single credit card in my mother’s name,
leaving my mother with debt and 4 children to raise on her own. We needed education, food,
clothes and lived miles away from town. As you might see, we did not have it easy – But cutting
my story short;
So it was necessary to work. So from the age of 16, I worked part-time as a waiter, every
weekend and holiday earning just enough to save up to get my driver’s license, pay for books
and help my mother put food on the table. Even after excelling in school, I was still declined for
bursary after bursary because of unknown reasons. So, where is the equality of Rawls when you
need it, if I may ask?
After telling my story, I have to argue that I disagree with the income measurement. It does not
consider all the other factors that might play an essential role in the accurate measurement of
determining your location on the scale. Expense is a significant factor that is critical to
determine your measurement of income. With inflation, prices of products are increasing, but
our income levels stay the same.
Take, for instance, the rent of a two-bedroom apartment for a mother and a daughter. The rent
is R5200 per month, and no, it’s not fancy. It’s in a poor and unsafe neighborhood. So after the
rent, what is left. Some people can claim free housing since they are on the bottom level of
income. According to the South-African government, you can qualify for free housing if your
income level is lower than R3500 per month. And more ridiculously, to qualify, you should not
have a financial dependent, in other words, children. Isn’t housing supposed to help the poor
children and change their circumstances to have a better future. I believe this is unfair and is a
definite form of discrimination. http://www.dhs.gov.za/content/faq
After deducting rent, electricity, and water, our household’s monthly total income leaves us
with less than R2000 between two people. This should cover bills, food, and medical costs, etc.
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