Introduction
The article by Sara Castellanos addresses the issue of how the digital revolution is changing the workplace market. According to the author, by 2025, half of all jobs will be automated (Castellanos, 2018). Although new places would appear. As a result, this brings forth the ethical question of whether or not it is moral to allow machines to take work and livelihood away from humans. The antagonism lies between humanitarian concerns versus the freedom of those who would own the machines to do what they wish. Another ethical dilemma lies in what an individual should do when faced with hardship as a result of these developments.
Applying Ancient Stoicism to Modern Ethical Dilemmas
The Stoic theory of ethics is one of the ancient theories, and its invention was accredited to Marcus Aurelius. The two main foci of the theory include the emphasis on resilience, virtue, and the sphere of control. According to Stoics, the emergence of machinery is a natural development in technology, and opposing it is pointless. The development lies outside of anyone’s control, and begrudge others for inventing and implementing machines is folly.
The virtuous course of action for anyone caught in hardship because of the situation is to adapt by embracing a vocation that is not easily replaced and continuing to do so throughout one’s life. As the article suggested, the emergence of new technologies would come with a multitude of jobs and positions open to those willing to adapt to them. Thus, the theory would help resolve the issue by improving the resilience and adaptability of the populace.
Conclusion
To summarize, the outcome will be as it always is when new technology is introduced into life – there will be pushback from those unwilling to change. The pushback will eventually fade and those who managed to prepare themselves for the future would thrive. The constituents’ view of these changes would depend on their virtue of adaptability. Those who were short-sighted or poorly equipped to deal with the new reality would resent it; those who succeeded – would embrace it.
Reference
Castellanos, S. (2018). By 2025, machines will perform half of today’s workplace tasks. The Wall Street Journal. Web.