In the days of feudalism, knights, and peasants, a person’s word was their most treasured possession. Knights were pledged to lords and manors, not by any written contract or the power of a lawyer, but merely by a verbal promise. Breaking your word was equal to resigning yourself to a lifetime of shame and rejection. To renege on a pledge was to sully one’s honor, and honor was highly precious. As society progressed and universal writing systems developed, people began writing these promises down on paper. The act of giving one’s word was replaced with the signature, a written embodiment of self. Though a little more tangible, the signature was still a solemn promise to do what you said you would. In our time, I believe we have lost the solemnity of making a promise. Giving one’s word means just a little less, and there is little to no concern for “honor”. It’s difficult to figure out what is truly considered ultimately right or wrong. What constitutes breaking your word, and does your word mean anything anymore?

This is not to say that there is no honor left in the world. There are plenty of people who act unselfishly, performing acts of compassion for their fellow man. But as a whole, we aren’t generally taught that we must be honorable above all else. If you were to try and give your word that you would repay a bank loan, without any collateral, the (bank people) would probably laugh in your face. For the most part, even if something is promised, that doesn’t necessarily mean it will happen. There is a big emphasis in our culture on understanding when things don’t work out. Generally, this is a good thing, but it means that we also don’t hold ourselves to a strict standard of doing exactly what we said we would. Following through on our word is just not that important.

In the end, it all comes down to why or why not we choose to trust each other. Our society puts a huge emphasis on getting ahead, no matter the cost. If you come out on top, whether in your career or personal life, it doesn’t matter who you had to step on to get there. As one becomes more successful, cheating is sort of expected. A good portion of professional athletes do or have done steroids. Politicians and business people are expected to manipulate and lie to the public and their partners in order to get the best possible deal or the most votes. The media, the government, systems that arose for the purpose of trust and transparency, are now secret keepers and manipulators of information. We feel that we cannot really trust anyone, especially those who are supposed to be examples to the general public.

So, in a culture where we can’t trust those with the most power over our lives, how do we survive? Can we trust anyone? Is there no honor anymore? I would suggest trust with caution. Everyone is raised with different values, so it can be difficult to discern who is willing to compromise fairness for an advantage over others. The most important thing, I feel, is to set strict standards for yourself. Hold yourself to the promises you make, and renew to yourself the concept of keeping your word. At the end of the day, when all else is lost, we still have our honor, if we have decided to keep it.