The Verbs as Domain of Virtue Computation
The link between Virtue and Action is almost self-explanatory.
1. Statement of Principle
1.1 Virtues are not abstract ideals floating independently.
1.2 They originate in actions — and linguistically, actions are represented by verbs/predicates.
1.3 Therefore, verbs are the root soil from which virtues grow, and the site of analysis where virtues can be identified and extracted.
2. Why Verbs? (Ontological and Linguistic Grounding)
2.1 Every verb describes a doing, undergoing, or becoming.
2.2 Ethics concerns what we do — hence, verbs encode the morally relevant material.
2.3 Without verbs, there is no movement, no relation, no choice → no morality.
2.4 Nouns (states, objects) may describe contexts, but verbs describe decisions/events, which are the proper domain of virtue.
3. Verbs → Virtue Extraction
3.1 Step 1: Identify an atomic action (verb instance).
3.2 Step 2: Analyse the valence of that verb against the N axes (e.g., to measure, to forgive).
3.3 Step 3: Extract the virtue core (e.g., measuring honestly → Truth/Measurability).
3.4 Step 4: Record the mapping (colored coin issuance, proof capture, etc.).
4. Why Verbs are the Root of Virtues
4.1 Universality: Every culture has verbs; verbs encode what humans recognize as morally salient.
4.2 Granularity: Verbs can be minimal (“to smile,” “to measure”) — enabling atomic moral analysis.
4.3 Compositionality: Complex actions (wars, institutions) are composites of simpler verbs — thus decomposable into virtue vectors.
4.4 Proof‑friendliness: Verbs denote observable acts, which can be recorded and proven (timestamp, evidence).
4.5 Cross‑tradition comparability: Mapping virtues across religions and philosophies works only if we trace them to common actions (verbs).
4.6 Dynamic nature: Virtues live in choices and habits → these are sequences of verbs, not static nouns.
5. Examples
5.1 To forgive → root verb; from it emerges the virtue Mercy/Forgiveness.
5.2 To trade → root verb; from it emerges the virtue Market (voluntary exchange).
5.3 To measure → root verb; from it emerges the virtue Truth/Measurability.
5.4 To govern → root verb; from it emerges the virtue Governance.
5.5 To compete → root verb; from it emerges the virtue Competition.
5.6 To plant → root verb; from it emerges the virtue Continuity/Sustainability.
6. Implications
6.1 Any system that ignores verbs risks losing the root of virtue; it becomes abstract, detached, or merely aspirational.
6.2 By contrast, a verb‑rooted system ensures virtues remain grounded in action.
6.3 This makes the 21‑axis framework both spanning (covers all verbs) and provable (every action can be assessed).
7. Conclusion
7.1 Verbs are the source of virtues.
7.2 They are where virtues are rooted, analysed, and extracted.
7.3 Therefore, the study of virtue must always begin with verbs — the primal seeds of moral reality.