On the genealogy of responsibility : elements for building consensus in ethics

Abstract

The ethical dimension, present in the cultural development of our civilisation since the earliest philosophical reflections, has significantly accelerated in recent decades. It has taken on a new centrality, due to rapid technological transformations and the expansion of their potential applications across various spheres of individual and societal life. A concomitant factor has been the growing complexity of the phenomena shaping human life, along with a heightened sensitivity to conscious participation in the decision-making process regarding both individual and collective choices. This ethical dimension plays a crucial role not only in understanding the fundamental questions related to the human condition but also in finding practical solutions that guide personal and collective choices, and in interpreting the public and private rules of conduct that should be followed. [excerpt]