human dignity
Innate personal worth
Human dignity is the inherent worth of every person, regardless of status, ability, or circumstance.
The concept underlies much of modern ethics and human rights law—the idea that people deserve respect simply because they are human, not because of what they can do or contribute.
The prisoners were stripped of their human dignity.
Appeals to human dignity appear in debates about everything from labor conditions to end-of-life care.
- ubuntuShared humanity ethic
- intrinsic valueWorth independent of circumstance
- justiceFair treatment under law
- equalitySame status for all
- autonomyIndependent decision-making capacity
born equal · Bill of Rights · right to life · civil liberties · moral worth · respect · voice · treated with respect · personhood · compassion · universal values · inviolability · integrity · anti-discrimination · fairness · egalitarianism · welcome · safe haven
- Christian ethicsChristian morality, Christian values, divine law, Christian virtues, natural law
- Catholic social teachingCST, encyclicals, subsidiarity, common good, John Paul II
- Christian DemocracyCDA, CSU, subsidiarity, personalism, Angela Merkel
- dignity and respectself-worth, respect, mutual respect, self-respect, honor
- moral sayingsdo unto others, golden rule, do the right thing, honesty is the best policy, treat others fairly
- respectrespect, admiration, esteem, regard, reverence
human dignityworthlessness
Lack of any value
degradation · dehumanization · humiliation · debasement · objectification
human dignityenslavement
Forced human ownership
torture · brutalization · exploitation · abuse · cruelty
human dignityinstrumentalization
Treating as mere means
animalization · worthlessness · dispensability · objectification · fungibility
human, dignity, humane, humanity, inhuman, dignified, superhuman, inhumane, dignitary