Extemporaneous musings, occasionally poetic, about life in its richly varied dimensions, especially as relates to history, theology, law, literature, science, by one who is an attorney, ordained minister, historian, writer, and African American.
Monday, November 6, 2017
REASONABLE MAN STANDARD
The so-called "reasonable man standard" that is used in American law, is an imputed , hypothetical standard of care and conduct used in common law in civil cases to say what is unreasonable in the mind of the judges. White men, of course, are its idealized avatars not black men , who were not deemed "men," by its white racist users. It was found most probably (that is where I saw it) in NICOMACHEAN ETHICS by Aristotle, in an era predating American racism, coming over from England. Personally, I prefer the "righteous man" standard as the reasonable man is too low, and lacks spiritual backing like the Bible, Qu'ran, Buddhist texts to sustain and renew it . Racists deem themselves reasonable! Aristotle learned from Plato, who learned what he knew in the final days of the glory of ancient Egypt from its priests, where he studied and lived by "Father Nile" for 20 years.