Actions can fall under multiple
defined categories. The first subheadings are voluntary and non-voluntary.
Voluntary
actions are those that are done completely by a person with full
information about their consequences and final result. These actions can be
further divided into chosen and not chosen. Chosen actions are decided upon
after deliberation; a person considers the outcome and possible consequences of
an action, believes that the end is worth achieving, and finally acts. Actions
that are not chosen are those that a person does completely willingly but
without deliberation. A husband that walks in on a cheating wife may
irrationally kill her and her lover willingly but without taking time to
consider the outcome. Non-voluntary actions can fit into the categories of
either enacted under
ignorance or caused by an external force. If a person
steps on a cat that she doesn’t see, no one would accuse her of animal cruelty.
She
voluntarily stepped but did not voluntarily hurt the cat. If a strong gust
of wind had blown the cat at her and her shoulder injured the cat, the she is
also not acting voluntarily. An external force, wind in this case, caused her
to injure the cat. There is one exception to the non-voluntary case and that is
avoidable ignorance. If a man is ignorant of laws forbidding domestic violence,
he may beat his wife. He was acting under ignorance but the laws are readily
available to the public and are considered common knowledge.
It
will become apparent during the discussion of responsibility that the author’s
theory of character acquisition plays a role and thus deserves a part in this
discussion. One must ask first whether a person’s personality is a result of
their own actions or if it was a development over which they have no control.
Aristotle claims that everyone is born with certain capacities but it is
through habituation that these capacities are realized. A person may act
unjustly a few times without being an unjust person. However, a person who
continues to act unjustly will develop a habit on injustice. It is an
individual decision to realize these capacities. If one were to choose not to
habitually act unjustly despite having that disposition or background, then
they would not become unjust. The most important aspect of this theory to glean
is a final assumption that personality is essentially chosen because it is formed
from a person’s decisions