Conditions of Gratitude

Simmons begins his chapter on gratitude by examining its roots in ancient Greece, when it was defended by Socrates in Plato's Crito (Simmons 160). Socrates spoke of the Laws and how people ought to be grateful to the state which gave them a cultural and physical education that brought them into the world, and reared them, and gave everyone a share of all the good things at the state's disposal. Simmons comes up with five conditions which must be met to earn gratitude for beneficent acts, and gives examples of these (Simmons 170-178). The first condition is that the benefactor must have made some special effort or sacrifice, or incurred some loss in providing the benefit. The second condition is that the benefit must be intentional, that it must be given voluntarily, and that it must not have been provided out of self-interest. No debt of gratitude is earned if the benefactor bestows the benefits in order to hurt another person, or if the benefit is only incidental to the benefactor's actions.

The third condition Simmons specifies for earning gratitude is that a benefit cannot be forced upon anyone who does not want it (Simmons 175-176). The fourth condition is that the benefit which is given must be wanted in the broad sense which allows instances where an individual can be taken to want the benefit provided even though they may not expressly say so.

The fifth condition is that individuals must not want the benefit not to be provided by the benefactor (Simmons 1

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d to do so. The great flaw of consent theory, says Klosko, is that many people have not consented. Walker, unlike Simmons and Klosko, believes thoroughly in political obligations of gratitude, and believes that citizens owe a debt of gratitude to their fellow citizens and the state (Walker 191-199). Unlike Simmons, he also believes it is possible to owe gratitude towards an institution, such as a hospital where one has been a patient and been helped many times. He considers this an obligation of gratitude. Walker considers gratitude to be a set of attitudes: appreciation, goodwill and respect for the benefactor (200). Gratitude, says Walker, is not just repaying some one for benefits received, but involves complying with reasonable requests from the benefactor, avoiding harming the benefactor or acting contrary to their interests, and respecting the benefactor's rights (202). Walker also believes a citizen's obligation of gratitude must be relevant to compliance with the law, and the argument from gratitude must be an independent argument (Walker 202-203). He further outlines rules for gratitude which include: the person receiving benefits has an obligation of gratitude not to act against the interests of the benefacto

Category: Psychology - C