Virtue Signalling, Ancient and Modern

Virtue signalling is a new term for an old concept. One puts on a display that costs him nothing. It earns him praise -- or wards off rebuke -- as ostentation replaces actual possession of the virtue and affectation takes the form of self-sacrifice. Its appeal lies in an easy payoff for little work. Thus, virtue signalling functions as a new -- and more cynical -- form of boasting. Traditional boasting about one's beauty or riches appears self-centered and vain, whereas showing off how much one contributes to the common good -- lowering one's carbon footprint, appearing to help BIPOC, or voicing concern for the Developing World -- makes one appear more virtuous. But real virtue is silent. It is not something we self-attribute but a trait of character recognized by others. Aristotle argued that virtue is a habit, a disposition to behave in the right manner. And habits don't need to be signaled; they flow naturally from one's normal moral life.