Abstract
Several theories and definitions of goodness are delineated. Goodness, like relational beauty and truthfulness, is a mode of encountering meanings that are pure and excellent. Phenomenologically, the capacity for perceiving and enacting goodness-saturated meanings organizes our lifeworld. In existential terms, to be good is to make oneself worthy of the loving goodness that has been bestowed upon us and identifying with this life-affirming gift. The capacity for goodness is grounded in an ethic of love. Becoming a good person involves discovering and embodying value-laden meanings such as benevolence, honesty, and justice.
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Hannush, M.J. (2021). Goodness: The Capacity for Goodness. In: Markers of Psychosocial Maturation. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74315-4_9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74315-4_9
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