Duty

Duty

Duty (from "due" meaning "that which is owing"; Old French: deu, did, past participle of devoir; Latin: debere, debitum, whence "debt") is a term that conveys a sense of moral commitment or obligation to someone or something. The moral commitment should result in action; it is not a matter of passive feeling or mere recognition. When someone recognizes a duty, that person theoretically commits themself to its fulfillment without considering their own self-interest. This is not to suggest that living a life of duty entirely precludes a life of leisure; however, its fulfilment generally involves some sacrifice of immediate self-interest. Typically, "the demands of justice, honor, and reputation are deeply bound up" with duty.

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Famous quotes containing the word duty:

    It is my cousin’s duty to make curtsy and say, “Father, as it please you.” But yet for all that, cousin, let him be a handsome fellow, or else make another curtsy and say, “Father, as it please me.”
    William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

    Our duty now is to keep alive—to exist. What becomes of a nation if its citizens all die?
    Dudley Nichols, U.S. screenwriter. Jean Renoir. George Lambert (George Sanders)

    The way to transmute your iron duty into gold in everyone’s eyes is this: always deliver more than you promise.
    Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)