The Importance Of Obligations

Obligations are a set of unnamed rules we must follow and unstated debts we must settle. Contractual, they represent the repayment and perpetuation of goodwill in the world. Obligations have been described as duties or commitments or as something that should be done because it is the “right” thing to do. However, they only apply to something that should be done, not something that must be done. Although it often may not feel otherwise, fulfilling an obligation is a choice; it’s not mandatory. Why, then, do we so often feel that obligations are not a choice? It is because from a young age we are taught that there are unstated rules we must follow. We watch our parents, our family members, our teachers, and our friends engage in behaviors that

Without obligations people would feel no need to obey the law or act morally because there would be nothing attaching them to this world. Obligations hold the world together through bonds forged from implicit debts to one another. In essence, obligations are what prevent the world from devolving into chaos with each person acting solely for their own benefit because obligations draw individuals out of their self-centeredness to create bonds to other people and to establish social order.

Despite the fact that obligations are reciprocal, it is not necessary to have met someone in order to have an obligation to them. In fact, every single person is obligated to every other person in someway or another, however the strength and nature of the obligation depends on the relationship present. Because every other living thing coexists on the planet with one another, everyone is obligated to everyone else in one simple way: to show them respect and compassion. However, some obligations are stronger than others. For example, while I may be obligated to nod hello to someone I pass on the street, I am not obligated to make them proud,