Conscience, as an internal controller, is of particular value to a person, allowing him to critically assess his behavior. Its value characteristic can be understood based on the tasks and functions of conscience and its definition as a category of moral consciousness.
The tasks of conscience
Conscience is the moral consciousness of a person, his inner ability to distinguish between good and evil. The value characteristic of conscience is that this quality prompts a person to make a choice not in favor of evil, but in favor of good. The task of conscience is to determine by a person in a specific situation how he needs to act. Of course, each personality sets the framework for behavior itself, but conscience is capable of completely absorbing a person's experiences. It is an expression of his holistic participation in emotional experience.
Functions of conscience
The value characteristic of conscience is determined by its main function, that is, self-control. This quality reminds the individual of the responsibility and moral obligations that a person has, both to himself and to others. The moral life of a person presupposes the performance of specific functions by the conscience, which speaks even more about the value of this quality.
The main functions of conscience are executive, legislative and judicial, and it is in them that freedom, dignity and authority of conscience are manifested. Conscience is valued for always being able to point out the requirements of the moral law. She approves or denounces committed acts, punishes or rewards for them. If the conscience is well trained, it will not only evaluate a person's actions, but will help him not to do what he will later regret.
Conscience as a moral consciousness
Conscience includes all morally conscious human activity. At every moment of life, conscience is the moral outcome of a certain deed or series of actions. The value of conscience lies in the fact that a person is responsible not so much to others as to himself, since he is considered the bearer of universal, highest values. Conscience insists on doing duty.
It is generally accepted that conscience can be clear, and every person, sometimes without realizing it, strives for this. A clear conscience is a person's awareness that he, on the whole, copes with his moral duties and does not have significant violations of duty or major deviations from moral guidelines. Striving for a clear conscience is the goal of every person, which is sometimes unconscious. The value characteristic of conscience also lies in the fact that it is it that can give a person such qualities as calmness, poise and optimism, which make a person the most useful part of society.
