The Dignity of Difference: Individuality as Source and Expression of Personal Value

Why does Scheler reject the possibility of reconciling phenomenological personalism and Scholastic metaphysics? Mohr claims that Scheler's rejection is in part related to the meaning of moral development. For Scheler, personal value is not grounded in metaphysical capacities of a shared nature, but in the value of individuality. This paper interprets and clarifies Scheler's positions on the content of personal individuality, how this content is value-bearing, and whether this value is original or derivative, absolute or conditional. Traditional ways of attempting to account for personal uniqueness, via either formal or empirical criteria, prove insufficient. If individuality is intrinsic to the person, and individuality is value-bearing, then there is a social responsible for assisting in disclosing personal individuality.