ABSTRACT
I consider ethics as a vision of the good life, expressed in stories about our existence and our behaviour towards and together with others in a world of life. As such, it expresses itself in certain ideas about the values of human beings, of human society and of the living nature. In that sense ethics belongs to the self-understanding of every human being. It is our understanding of what counts as highly valuable in personal encounters, in social relationships and in our ties to nature. It is a double vision, of what is and what ought to be, but if we have not already experienced it to some extent and discovered it as a reality, we would never have been able to imagine it as a goal. Conversely, if the good life had already totally realised itself, we would never have the need to speak about ethics. Thus ethics is first of all a vision which shapes us as human beings, as persons able to take our responsibilities for our life with others and with the whole living world.
