Importance Of Human Dignity

Human dignity, which is a person's self-worth, is a part of what makes humans want to live. It adds meaning to one’s life and without it, humans feel like nothing. As a result, humans all desire human dignity and want to keep it for as long as possible to feel valuable enough to keep on thriving. Developing human dignity begins by understanding how human worth works and the violations of human dignity.

First off, human dignity does not need to be created, but just nurtured. For instance, Hicks says, "I do not think that dignity is a need. It is an essential aspect of our humanity. We do not need it, because we already have it" (29). The trait of human dignity comes naturally to humans and is not something to be earned or asked for. All

This starts with thinking about what situation or issue makes one feel worthless or emotionally damaged. In other words, examination into one's experiences for when one felt that they were degraded by someone else's actions. This helps in understanding how others would feel violated when we inflict the same degrading actions onto them. Hicks asserts that, "Treating people badly because they have done something wrong only perpetuates the cycle of indignity. What is worse, we violate our own dignity in the process" (5). Human dignity goes full circle in which violations of other's dignity comes to violating one’s own dignity. When one treats others badly, the victim of it is bound to treat them back just as badly and others as well. Hicks also claims that, "Repeated violations of our dignity undermine not only our self-worth but our capacity to be in relationships with others in ways that bring out our best and their best" (20). The continued violation of one's dignity can destroy one's mental acknowledgement of self-worth and eliminate the want to promote each other's human worth. No one would want to value others because of the fear of being mistreated and that leads to no human recognition that is needed to feel valuable practiced by anyone. Therefore, it is important to understand how violating someone else's dignity can affect everyone's