In our rapidly changing world, two powerful forces shape human life: objective duties and subjective desires.

Navigating the Balance: Collective Duty and Personal Desire

In our rapidly changing world, two powerful forces shape human life: objective duties and subjective desires. Duties, embedded in laws and norms, set behavioral boundaries, while inner aspirations allow each of us to express individuality in fulfilling them. For example, marital love illustrates this dynamic: the law mandates the need to love, yet it is personal choice that determines how and in what form these feelings are expressed.

At the same time, modern society is increasingly oriented toward personal pleasures and the pursuit of happiness, where the desire for immediate gratification may clash with deep social obligations. This trend raises concerns about a potential loss of responsibility for our actions and their consequences—a shift that could negatively impact collective values. The choice between universal norms and individual demands stands as a key challenge of our time, demanding not only thoughtful consideration but also vigorous effort to achieve balance. Only by uniting the personal pursuit of happiness with a sense of collective responsibility can we preserve society’s viability and dynamic development.

How do personal desires relate to the concept of duty, and where is the boundary between them in modern society?

In contemporary society, personal desires and the notion of duty are closely intertwined, despite their differing natures. On one hand, duties are the established norms or laws that prescribe certain behaviors; on the other, personal desires represent individual choices, subjective aspirations, and the uniqueness of each person. It is precisely this individual element that enables a person to decide how to fulfill a duty prescribed by social norms.

For instance, regarding marital love, the law mandates the duty to love, yet it is personal choice that determines the object of that love. As noted in one of the sources:
"Love, and specifically marital love, is commanded to us by law, but it cannot indicate to the person the object of his marital love. That is already the personal choice of the individual, but the law applies in any case." (source: link txt)

This underscores that duty exists as a universal requirement, yet its practical implementation always hinges on the individual preferences and desires of a particular person.

Conversely, in a modern society where a hedonistic lifestyle prevails, personal pleasures and the pursuit of happiness acquire primacy. This approach often results in personal freedom in seeking pleasure becoming the ultimate principle, which in turn can weaken the sense of responsibility for actions or obligations stemming from social and moral norms. This tendency is reflected in the following statement:
"Responsibility for one's actions, words, thoughts, ultimately for other people who depend on you. Maybe I am biased or misinformed, but it seems to me that we can increasingly speak of a sense of responsibility in the modern world with growing alarm, just as we speak of the dangers of terrorism and environmental pollution. The ideal of modern society is hedonistic, that is, directed toward obtaining pleasure. In it, pleasure is a commodity, and it is bought. Thus, the ideal life entails having sufficient means to purchase as many pleasures as possible." (source: link txt)

Furthermore, there is a cautionary note that if the right to pursue personal happiness is elevated to an absolute, society might eventually cease to respect its obligations, leading to a loss of viability:
"If we elevate the 'right to happiness' to an absolute anywhere, sooner or later this principle will overrun everything. We are moving toward a society in which every human desire is deemed legitimate. And then, even if technology can help us hold on a little longer, our civilization may be considered dead..." (source: link txt)

Thus, the boundary between personal desires and duties lies where universal norms and rules intersect with individual choice. Duty exists as an objective imperative requiring one to perform certain actions, while personal desire functions as a subjective aspiration that determines the manner and substance in which these duties are fulfilled. In the modern world, this boundary is blurred by trends that excessively legitimize individual demands, potentially leading to the erosion of collective values and a diminished sense of responsibility for one’s actions and for others.

Supporting citation(s):
"Love, and specifically marital love, is commanded to us by law, but it cannot indicate to the person the object of his marital love. That is already the personal choice of the individual, but the law applies in any case." (source: link txt)

"Responsibility for one's actions, words, thoughts, ultimately for other people who depend on you. Maybe I am biased or misinformed, but it seems to me that we can increasingly speak of a sense of responsibility in the modern world with growing alarm, just as we speak of the dangers of terrorism and environmental pollution. The ideal of modern society is hedonistic, that is, directed toward obtaining pleasure. In it, pleasure is a commodity, and it is bought. Thus, the ideal life entails having sufficient means to purchase as many pleasures as possible." (source: link txt)

"If we elevate the 'right to happiness' to an absolute anywhere, sooner or later this principle will overrun everything. We are moving toward a society in which every human desire is deemed legitimate. And then, even if technology can help us hold on a little longer, our civilization may be considered dead..." (source: link txt)