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Ethical Life or `The Customary'

This article deals with the question of what type of ethics may be efficient to cope with actual problems in advanced societies, i.e. environmental problems, social conflicts, the usage of new technologies. The answer given is that it is not morality or ethical decisions that count but the customary (das Übliche). But the customary is a rather precarious resource. This is not only because it may turn out to be the particularistic orientation of social groups, like those of companies, political parties, or even peer groups but also because it is eaten up by the progress of modernity. This is shown by comparison with the historical forerunner of the customary, namely what has been called ethical life (substantielle Sittlichkeit) by Hegel.

Key Words: customs • ethical life • modernity • substantielle Sittlichkeit • Üblichkeiten

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