Morality has been a discussion topic for centuries. Throughout history, some people believed that people shape their own values through personal experiences while some other believed that society is the one teaching us our morals. So, do we create our own sense of morality or is it already shaped from the day we were born?
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First of all, it is a known fact that humans learn from their own mistakes and successes better than any other method. Additionally experiencing moral dilemmas firsthand makes people to develop their own sense of what is right and what is wrong rather than just following what they are told by society. And these firsthand experiences make morality and ethical values feel real rather than just theoretical and abstract.
However, from childhood all of us are taught what is right or wrong based on traditions, religious or cultural beliefs and more importantly societal expectations. These rules shapes individual’s mindset before they can even think or question for themselves about their own life. Moreover, legal and educational systems are designed to enforce the usual moral behavior of the culture it is in. While these systems influence us more than we think there is also a factor which may be even more important than these: social pressure and conformity. Almost every person -and especially the young generations- feel the pressure of their peers and the judgment or exclusion of other people making them to adopt the values of their community, even if they do not fully agree with them.
In conclusion, I believe that the moral values are mostly shaped by societal impositions even if we think otherwise because of the human brain getting deeply influenced by its surroundings without us even realizing. From childhood to adult ages we have been told what should we do about our lives and after a point we start to suppress our own morals just to fit in. Therefore, even though personal experiences may evolve our beliefs the core of our morality and mentality is largely shaped by our culture and society making complete moral independence more of an illusion than a reality.