Business ethics lectures. Hostages of Honor: Five Main Men's Codes of Conduct

FURFUR has collected the codes of honor of all times to talk about the main male laws, and understand what differences and similarities can be found in the codes of a knight, a boy scout, a gentleman, a duelist and a mafioso.

CODE OF THE KNIGHT (XII century)

Chivalry was the moral system of the Middle Ages, which rested on such qualities as courage, bravery, honor and gallantry. All future male codes in one way or another repeat and idealize the knightly code dark ages. This code was first written down in the Song of Roland - heroic poem XII century.

5 points from the code of chivalry

Printed based on the work
"The Song of Roland", written in the 12th century.

THE GENTLEMAN'S CODE (1839)

Since the term “gentleman” has existed, hundreds of gentleman’s codes have been written, but one of the strictest is the code of the oldest military institute in the United States, the Virginia Institute, founded in 1839. Virginia is a southern state, which meant in those years that the local society was traditional and conservative. The Virginia Institute hosted grueling workouts, military discipline reigned and there was a strict gentleman's code: “Without strict adherence to the fundamental Code of Honor, no man, no matter what he looks like, can be considered a gentleman. A gentleman's honor requires the sanctity of his word and the incorruptibility of his principles. He is a descendant of knights, crusaders, he is a defender of the weak and a knight of justice."

5 points from the gentleman's code

Source: Code of Honor of the Military Institute
Virginia 1839 (1997 revision).

SCOUT CODE (1908)

English General Baden-Powell founded the Boy Scouts movement in 1908. The main goal of the association was to make real men and exemplary citizens out of boys. Members of the movement had own code, uniform, hierarchy and award badges. After two and a half years of the movement’s existence, there were already more than 400 thousand Boy Scouts in England and the association began to spread to other countries of the world, primarily to the USA.

5 points from the scout code

Source: book “Scouting for boys” 1908.

THE DUELIST'S CODE (1912)

A duel, a noble way to respond to an insult to honor, was almost never supported by the state. The dueling code used by the nobles was most often an unwritten set of rules, inextricably linked with the concept of noble honor and not fixed anywhere. Nevertheless, there were generally accepted standards for conducting a duel, which were collected by General Durasov and published in 1912.

5 points from the dueling code

The structure of any society requires regulation by certain social norms. Almost all of them are ambiguous and unique in time and space. This idea is considered in his statement by one of the founders of Marxism - the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthe diversity of social prescriptions and attitudes. In particular, F. Engels points out that the differentiation of social layers in society presupposes the formation of a set of values, priorities and guidelines characteristic of each such layer.

This statement seems interesting and unique in the context of a kind of “blurring” social structure modern information society and its transformation social norms.

It is difficult to argue with the position of F. Engels. Social norms are a set of standards and rules for everyday behavior of an individual approved by society. Social norms are divided into legal, moral, religious, fashion, etiquette and a number of others. Moreover, for various countries and regions, for each period, depending on the historical and cultural situation, specific prescriptions and stereotypes of behavioral activity of a person or group of people arose.

Compliance with these standards was reinforced public opinion laws and incentives, and violation often entailed the application of negative sanctions.

Rules of conduct established for a specific social group often placed its representative in difficult situation and were left with no choice. So, in the middle of the 12th century. English king Henry II went on a campaign to Toulouse to capture it. Wanting to protect his relative's city, King Louis VII of France stationed himself there for defense with a much smaller force. Henry, approaching the city, learned that the French ruler was stationed there, to whom he had once sworn an oath of vassal allegiance (homage) and an obligation to protect him; to attack the city where Louis was located meant betraying the norms chivalric code and be known as dishonest person. Therefore, Henry, undermining his authority as a warrior and commander, abandoned the assault on Toulouse, remaining faithful to the homage of his overlord.

The formation of social norms usually occurred under the influence of pressing needs or specific social conditions. For example, in the USSR in the first decades new forms were established speech etiquette: old regime addresses were considered a relic. So, in the work of M.I. Bulgakov " dog's heart“The representative of the “old intelligentsia” made an old-fashioned address as “gentlemen” and was immediately corrected by a young man who declared that it was inadmissible to address his interlocutor in such a way in other, Soviet realities.

To summarize, we can point out that the existence social differentiation in society will always presuppose its isolation by certain special rules. One of the inevitable components in these norms and attitudes, then, must be their fairness, dignity and respect instilled in the members of this public group in relation to other social strata.

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Updated: 2018-11-25

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It is no secret that in addition to laws, people's lives are governed by rules and norms adopted in different communities - national, class, professional. These also include codes of honor, which have long been surrounded by an aura of romance - if only because for a long time they were kept secret

Officer's code

Officer codes different countries sometimes they contradicted not only the law, but also the military regulations. Because of this, they were not published for a long time, disseminated in lists or orally.

Before the revolution, the book “Advice to a Young Officer” was published in six editions, but even these were not enough - they were copied by hand

Russia was no exception: informal sets of officer rules of conduct had existed here since the 18th century, but only in 1904 were they published by captain Valentin Mikhailovich Kulchitsky. His fate is typical for many officers: a participant in the Russian-Japanese, First World War and Civil War, he refused to emigrate and ended up in the Gulag. Released. During the Great Patriotic War he became an underground worker in Kharkov, was captured and tortured during interrogation.

Before the revolution, his book “Advice to a Young Officer” was published in six editions, but even these were not enough - they were copied by hand. It contained advice not only about work, but also for all occasions in life. The author considered his goal “to prevent inexperienced military youth from taking a false, disastrous step.”

Chapter "The Essence of Military Service"

Be afraid of breaking your duty

Believe in God, be devoted to the Sovereign Emperor, his family and love your Motherland. The first and main commandment and duty of a soldier is loyalty to the Sovereign Emperor and

To the Fatherland. Without this quality he is not fit for military service. The integrity of the Empire and the maintenance of its prestige are based on the strength of the army and navy; their quality and shortcomings resonate throughout the country, so it’s not your place to get involved in social issues and political speculation; your job is to unswervingly fulfill your duties.

Put above all else the glory of the Russian army.

Be brave. But courage can be true and feigned. The arrogance characteristic of youth is not courage. A military man must always be prudent and consider his actions calmly and carefully. If you are harsh and arrogant, everyone will hate you.

Obey discipline.

Respect and trust your superiors.

Be afraid of breaking your duty - you will forever lose your good name.

An officer must be faithful and truthful. Without these qualities, it is almost impossible for a military man to remain in the army. Faithful is a person who fulfills his duty; truthful - if he does not change his word. Therefore, never promise if you are not sure that you will fulfill your promise.

Be polite and modest in your dealings with all people.

The best part of courage is caution.

Chapter "Rules of Life"

Never express opinions about women

Don't court the regimental ladies (in the vulgar sense). Don’t start romances in your regimental family, in which you have to serve for decades. Such novels always end tragically.

Never express opinions about women. Remember: women have always been the cause of discord and the greatest misfortunes not only of individuals, but also of entire empires.

Take care of the reputation of the woman who trusted you, no matter who she is. A decent person in general, especially an officer, never talks about such things even in the intimate circle of his trusted and trusted friends - a woman is always most afraid of publicity.

There are situations in life when you need to silence your heart and live with your mind.

Be very careful in your intimate life - “your regiment is your supreme judge.”

Any unseemly actions of an officer are discussed by the regimental court of honor.

There is no need to talk about service and affairs in society.

Keep an entrusted secret or a secret, even of a non-official nature. A secret that you tell to at least one person ceases to be a secret.

Do not cross the line of conventions developed by the traditions of the regiment and life.

Be guided in life by instinct, a sense of justice and a duty of decency.

Know how to not only think and reason, but also be silent in time and hear everything.

On military service Don’t show your pride in small things, otherwise you will always suffer because of it.

Always be alert and don't let yourself go.

The main rules run like a red thread throughout the book: “Take care of your honor, the honor of the regiment and the army”; “Be strict about your official duties”; “Behave yourself simply, with dignity, without foppishness”; “Be self-possessed, correct and tactful always, with everyone and everywhere.” The author recommends that the officer be honest, modest, not go on a spree at someone else's expense, avoid financial accounts with comrades, and avoid drunkenness and gambling.

Seaman's code

The sailors looked death in the face no less often than the “land” officers - this is probably why they also developed their own code of honor early on. True, no one bothered to write it down: only individual norms, closely intertwined with maritime superstitions, have reached us.

The sailors of the sailing fleet never announced the date of arrival of the ship at the port of destination and did not even enter it in the logbook.

It was forbidden to point a finger from the shore at a sailing ship - this promised him death.

A finger pointed at the sky (even if accidentally) promised a storm.

It was forbidden to talk about the storm on board, even if it had already passed - one could only say: “It has passed, and thank God!”

When a storm began, sailors should put on clean underwear.

They dressed in everything clean before the battle - “on the first date.”

Sailors never offended seagulls, despite their impudence - it was believed that the souls of dead sailors migrated to these birds.

In general, naval concepts of honor were similar to those of officers - duels among sailors also happened, although they were only allowed to take place on shore. The elders also taught the younger ones to be faithful to their duty, honest, modest, and temperate.

And just like on land, some listened wise advice, while others do not.

Duelist's Code

The "Dueling Code" was first published in 1911 by Vasily Alekseevich Durasov, a diplomat and historian. His book is a massive (500-item) set of dueling rules, largely borrowed from the French Verger Code.

Theory

1) A duel can and should only take place between equals.

2) The basic principle and purpose of a duel is to resolve a misunderstanding between individual members of a common noble family among themselves, without resorting to outside help.

3) A duel serves as a method of revenge for an insult and cannot be replaced, but at the same time it cannot replace the judicial authorities that serve to restore or defend a violated right.

4) Insult can only be inflicted by equals.

5) A person inferior to another can only violate his right, but not insult him.

6) Therefore, a duel, as revenge for an insult, is possible and permissible only between persons of equal, noble origin. Otherwise, the duel is unacceptable and is an anomaly.

7) When a nobleman is summoned by a commoner, the first is obliged to reject the challenge and give the latter the right to seek satisfaction through judicial procedure.

8) If a nobleman’s rights are violated by a commoner, despite the offensiveness of his actions, the former is obliged to seek satisfaction through judicial procedure, since he suffered from the violation of the right, but not from the insult.

9) If, despite this, the nobleman still wants to fight, then he has the right to do so only with the formal written permission of the court of honor, which considers whether the enemy is worthy of the honor being shown to him.

10) A duel between commoners is possible, but it is an anomaly and does not meet its purpose.

Practice

58) Insults have personal character and take revenge personally.

59) Replacing the insulted person with another is allowed only in case of incapacity of the insulted person, when insulting women and when insulting the memory of a deceased person.

60) The substitute person is always identified with the personality of the person being replaced, enjoys all his advantages, assumes all his responsibilities...

61) Incapacity for the right of substitution is determined by the following provisions:

1] the person being replaced must be over 60 years old, and the age difference with the opponent must be at least 10 years. If the physical condition of the person being replaced gives him the opportunity to personally take revenge for the insult received, and if he expresses his consent, then he has the right not to exercise the right of replacement;
2] the person being replaced must be under 18 years of age;
3] the person being replaced must have some kind of physical disability that does not allow him to fight with pistols, swords and sabers;
4] inability to use a weapon can in no case serve as a reason for replacing or refusing a duel.

A son can replace an insulted father, a nephew - an uncle, a son-in-law - a father-in-law. Only if the offended person has no relatives can a friend intercede for him. If an insult is inflicted on a woman, her “natural defender” - her husband, brother or other close relative - takes revenge for her. True, with a condition: a duel is permissible if the woman is known for “moral and honest behavior.” Anyone who once refused to accept a challenge or violated the rules of a duel is deprived of the right to challenge others, no matter how severe the insult inflicted on him.

Conditions

215) Having arrived at the place of the fight, the opponents must bow to each other and to the opponent’s seconds.

216) Any conversation between opponents is prohibited. If one party has something to communicate to the other, this is carried out by the seconds,

217) Having received a weapon, opponents must remain silent throughout the duel. Any comments, ridicule, exclamations, screams are absolutely not allowed.

218) During the entire duel, opponents are obliged to unquestioningly carry out all orders of the seconds.

219) It is extremely impolite to make someone wait for you at the place of the fight. Those who arrive on time must wait for their opponent for a quarter of an hour. After this period, the one who came first has the right to leave the place of the fight and his seconds must draw up a protocol indicating the non-arrival of the opponent. The courtesy of the enemy who arrived first is allowed to wait an extra quarter of an hour.

200) If some insurmountable obstacle prevents one of the opponents from appearing on time, his seconds must warn the opponent’s seconds as soon as possible and agree with them to schedule the duel at another time.

The section “Duel with Pistols” describes six types of this duel, each of which can be limited to one shot, or can continue until one of the participants is wounded or even killed. In this case, “the seconds of the opposing side have the right to shoot the enemy who committed the violation.”

Doctor's Code

Doctors have been guided by the Hippocratic Oath since ancient times. Its ancient text included obligations to teach medicine to everyone for free, not to perform abortions and not to have sexual relations with patients.

And here is a version of the oath adopted in pre-revolutionary Russia:

“Accepting with deep gratitude the rights of a doctor granted to me by science and comprehending the full importance of the duties assigned to me by this title, I promise throughout my life not to tarnish the honor of the class into which I am now entering. Helping those who suffer, I promise to sacredly preserve those entrusted to me family secrets and do not abuse the trust placed in you. I promise to be fair to my fellow doctors and not to insult their personalities, however, if the benefit of the patient requires it, to tell the truth without hypocrisy. In important cases, I promise to resort to the advice of doctors who are more knowledgeable and experienced than me; When I myself am called to the meeting, I undertake in good conscience to give justice to their merits and efforts.”

The current "Oath of the Russian Doctor", based on the Geneva Declaration of 1949, calls on doctors to honestly fulfill their duty, to provide assistance regardless of gender, race, nationality, political beliefs, treat colleagues and your teachers kindly. There is only one prohibition in the oath - euthanasia, although in a number of countries it is also allowed.

Merchant Code

In 1881, a brochure by the writer Ivan Yegorovich Zegimel " Necessary rules for merchants, bankers, commission agents and in general for every person involved in any business." The text of this document is very relevant for today's business community.

We publish it without abbreviations or comments.

1) Business qualities: common sense, quick thinking, strength of character in carrying out all tasks. Every honest man can develop these qualities through unwavering determination and willpower.

2) Courtesy and politeness. It often happens to listen to undeserved insolence; It is extremely important not to lose composure and treat such incidents with complete tact and composure.

3) Use tact in politeness. If you are too generous with pleasantries in front of your customers, they may take it as an insult and ridicule; this will only push them away from you.

4) Keep order in all your affairs, even the smallest ones. Assign each thing its place so that when needed, you can find it without any difficulty and without wasting time. This is an extremely important condition for everyone business man. Don't go to bed until all your things are in order. Treasure the penny as you value the ruble.

5) Be systematic and regular. No business can go right and successfully if you do not have a stable character and do not have firm rules. You must observe regularity not only in your business, but also in your home circumstances.

6) Work yourself. Don't rely on your assistants. What you can do yourself, do not let others do. If others need to do something, then at least watch them.

7) Always keep given word. It is better not to promise if you are not sure that you are able to fulfill what you promised, but once you have given your word, you must remember it and sacredly fulfill it.

8) Post. If you want to do big things, do not spare money on frequent publications about them in the most widely circulated newspapers.

9) Do not pursue a business that promises big profits, but is fraught with risk. It is better to engage in subjects that provide at least a small but sure benefit.

10) Don't spend all your capital on one business, especially when starting out.

11) Concentration of forces is one of the main conditions for success. Do only one thing, thoroughly study its advantages and disadvantages, and do not abandon it until you are convinced of the impossibility of its success. But if there is the slightest chance of success, do not give up, because constant and zealous pursuit of one goal will certainly be crowned with success.

12) Be completely diligent in whatever you do. Work when the need arises: early and late, on time and at the wrong time, in a word, do not miss a single opportunity that could, albeit slowly, serve the success of your studies. It often happens to see that someone does his job diligently and thoroughly, makes a lot of money, and his neighbor, engaged in the same business, remains a poor man all his life, because he reluctantly or without proper attention performs his duty. “A student who goes to school under pressure will never learn anything.”

13) Be strictly selective in choosing assistants in your business. Hire employees who can comfortably live on the salary you set. A family man cannot exist on a small salary; he will inevitably become dishonest and will be busy worrying about his own interests.

14) A merchant who values ​​his honor should not hire a clerk, clerk or other employee who has ever worked for an acquaintance, only if the acquaintance asks him to do so.

15) Speak clearly and precisely to your customers.

16) Never be bored.

17) Maintain sobriety and restraint. Do not go into the details of other people's affairs, do not ask about them either directly or indirectly, otherwise you will be considered an annoying person.

18) Be calm and cool when discussing business with both buyers and sellers. No matter how lively your argument may be, never get excited or gesticulate, do not give any reason for strangers to eavesdrop on your conversation and judge by your facial expression and gestures what you are talking about.

19) Write everything down. Never keep in memory what can be written down now.

20) Every business is based on trust. Therefore, you should try with all your might to gain the complete confidence of those with whom you have to deal. This you can achieve in different ways, and most importantly - honesty and integrity.

21) Maintain savings in your personal expenses. It's better to live below your means than above.

Code of the Builder of Communism

"" was adopted in 1961 at the XXII Congress of the CPSU. One of its authors, political scientist F. Burlatsky, claimed that he deliberately added the Gospel commandments there. Therefore, they say, the text consisted of 12 points:

1) Devotion to the cause of communism, love for the socialist Motherland, for the countries of socialism.

2) Conscientious work for the benefit of society: he who does not work, does not eat.

3) Everyone cares about preserving and increasing the public domain.

4) High consciousness of public duty, intolerance to violations of public interests.

5) Collectivism and comradely mutual assistance: each for all, all for one.

6) Humane relations and mutual respect between people: man is friend, comrade and brother to man.

7) Honesty and truthfulness moral purity, simplicity and modesty in public and personal life.

8) Mutual respect in the family, concern for raising children.

9) Intransigence to injustice, parasitism, dishonesty, careerism, money-grubbing.

10) Friendship and brotherhood of all peoples of the USSR, intolerance towards national and racial hostility.

11) Intolerance towards the enemies of communism, the cause of peace and freedom of peoples.

12) Fraternal solidarity with the working people of all countries, with all peoples.

In the era of the growing crisis of socialism, principles in which their creators themselves did not believe were mocked.

IN post-Soviet era they were replaced by the commandments of “wild capitalism”, which completely deny any morality. Therefore, the “customs officer’s code”, “judge’s code”, “policeman’s code” and so on have multiplied like mushrooms. - just obviously fruitless attempts to connect paragraphs of the law with moral precepts.

This is impossible without returning to society the strict moral standards that once gave rise to the emergence of Codes of Honor.

Today in modern Russian society – society XXI V. - there is an acute question about “correct behavior”, about how young man build your relationships with other people, with friends, with comrades and work colleagues, how to behave in the world of private entrepreneurship.

A code of conduct is needed, first of all, for a young person. We call it " code of honor", which includes the following norms: 1) respect for elders. This is the most ancient rule, and it, of course, should be inherent in the modern young man; 2) " Golden Rule morality" - "do unto others as you would have them do unto you." This rule also applies to the most ancient; We find it in Confucianism, in the Bible, and in ancient authors; 3) respect national dignity another. This rule appears in Russian multi-ethnic society, where there are more than a hundred nations and nationalities, as the most important. It means an absolute ban on disrespectful tone, condescending attitude towards “outsiders”, national minorities, etc.; 4) respect for the religious feelings of another. There should not be the slightest disrespect for different religious denominations; 5) self-esteem; 6) respect for the dignity of another; 7) tolerance (tolerance) for the opinion of another, respect for the other’s right to dissent; 8) conscientiousness; 9) knowledge and compliance with the law; 10) knowledge and compliance etiquette standards; 11) hard work and frugality; 12) patriotism; 13) reverent attitude towards nature; 14) caring for our little brothers; 15) mercy.

Aristotle wrote more than two thousand years ago in the Nicomachean Ethics: “The truth about a respectable person is that he does a lot for the sake of friends and the fatherland and even dies for them, if necessary: ​​he will squander property and honors and generally benefits for which others hold on, leaving behind only moral beauty; he would rather experience intense pleasure for short term, and not weak for a long time, and live a wonderful year<предпочтительнее для него>than many years - as necessary, and one beautiful and great deed he will prefer many, but insignificant. This is probably what happens to those who die for others; in this case they choose what is greatness for themselves<и>beauty. And they will probably waste<свое достояние>on what their friends will get more from; then friends will get money, and they themselves will get moral beauty, so that greater good is given to themselves. Just like that<обстоят дела>with honors and positions of superiors, for all this will be left to a friend, because<отдавать другу>- this is wonderful and commendable. Naturally, the one who prefers moral beauty to everything is considered respectable” (Aristotle. Works in 4 volumes, vol. 4. - M., 1984, - pp. 258-259).

TOPIC 4.4 CONSCIENCE AND DUTY – THE FUNDAMENTAL MECHANISM OF MORALITY

THE CONCEPT OF DEBT

The moral and, more broadly, human justification of duty stems from the golden rule of behavior. For example, people, society gave life to a person, fed, clothed, put on shoes, raised, educated, i.e. they treated this man well, as he would have liked. Accordingly he must deal with them, in a particular case - must repay them in kind, i.e. by his behavior he should not worsen life, moreover, as far as possible, he should take care of its improvement.

The fulfillment of a duty by specific people is of the same importance for the health of society as the satisfaction of a need is for the health of an individual.

In his youth, a person accumulates debt because he still only takes from others, but still gives practically nothing to them. IN mature age a person both repays a debt and lends money.

Thus, the positive form of duty is a truncated expression of the positive formulation of the golden rule of morality (“do unto others as you would have them do unto you”), negative form duty is a truncated expression of the negative formulation of the golden rule (“don’t do to others what you don’t want them to do to you”).

The understanding of debt is divided into particular types depending on who we mean by “others”:

1. Duty to those who are nearby (parents, children, spouses, relatives, friends, comrades, colleagues, acquaintances)

2. Duty to strangers (neighbors, on the street, in public places, in nature)

3. Debt arising from academic or academic duties professional activity(educational, service, military, etc.)

4. Debt to one or another community: collective, clan, tribe, people, homeland, country of residence, civilization, race

5. Duty to humanity

6. Duty to living nature, life as such

Any debt is positioned not only in space (in front of those close and distant), but also in time (in front of the past and future). If, for example, you take on a debt to your parents, then we're talking about not only about the duty to living parents, but also to the dead (to preserve their memory, take care of burial places, etc.). If we take the duty to children, then we are talking not only about born children, but also about unborn ones. A growing person must realize that his sacred duty on Earth is to leave behind offspring. Therefore, he must monitor his health, strengthen it and not get into situations that threaten illness and infertility. A young girl must prepare herself for the role of a mother in all respects (both in the sense of strengthening her health, and in the sense of acquiring the appropriate knowledge and skills, and in the sense of being careful in making acquaintances and contacts). The same applies, by and large, to young boys.

It is also clear that all these types of debt should not contradict each other and, if possible, be combined and harmonized. For example, parental duty (to children) should not conflict with duty to other people, to humanity, finally. And, conversely, duty to humanity should not exclude duty to individuals and communities of people.

When such a conflict of obligations does arise, it is always a drama.