Note 181 — Chapter XV

Moral values, like economic values, in the sense in which I use the term here, are actual facts, and not mere ideals. A moral value is a value, to the extent that it is an effective power in motivation, to the extent that the social will backs it up, and punishes with its disapproval and with the subtle penalties which social disapproval involves, infractions of the moral standard in question. I am not here passing judgment on moral values themselves in the light of any ideal standard, but simply describing the manner in which moral values function.