Benjamin Franklin：Why Virtue Is Worth Pursuing
Benjamin Franklin《The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin》· Part Two, the Art of Virtue · Philosophy · Character · Human nature
In this piece it was my design to explain and enforce this doctrine, that vicious actions are not hurtful because they are forbidden, but forbidden because they are hurtful, the nature of man alone considered; that it was, therefore, every one's interest to be virtuous who wish'd to be happy even in this world.
Source：
https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/148/pg148.txt
Locator：Part Two, the Art of Virtue, paragraph beginning “In this piece it was my design...” · Verified：2026-10-19 · Verification：Exact match
Reading
Morality rests on harm, not merely on prohibition.
Context
Franklin argued that vicious actions are not harmful merely because they are forbidden; they are forbidden because they are harmful to human flourishing. Morality, on this view, rests on an understanding of consequences rather than fear of punishment. The claim appears in his Autobiography's discussion of the Art of Virtue.
Today's question
Do you follow a rule because you fear punishment—or because you understand why it harms people?
公版传记；原文逐字取自 Project Gutenberg《The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin》，此处取完整句子并附全书链接。
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