Character Should be the Foundation of Reputation

We need to start elevating the social status of people with superior character NOT superior reputation because these traits are not equivalent. Recently, as a country, we have been choosing role models based on their reputation instead of their character and therefore, we have been heavily disappointed when their true character is revealed. The fragile relationship between these two traits is summed up in a quote by Thomas Paine in which he says, “Reputation is what men and women think of us; character is what God and angels know of us.” When individuals focus on improving their character, they tend to be well-respected and reputable because God made humans attracted to those with character in His image. Building a character in God’s image however, takes hard work and time-commitment. Therefore, the people not willing to put in the work have found a way to cheat to the results without the base of a good character. These people work to build their outward image to make themselves seem reputable to others, but when their true morals and personality are revealed, their reputation crumbles.

Arthur Miller provides an example of people giving power to someone with a strong reputation but has distorted morals through his character, Abigail Williams. The town gives Abigail authority to throw women in jail by accusing them of witchcraft based on her reputation of being tortured by the devil, leaving many women asking “And [Abigail] charges me?” (Miller 258). Little does the town know that Abigail threatens the other girls that she will “come to [them] in the black of some terrible night and will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder [them],” (57-59) if they tell the truth or reveal her true character. When emphasis is placed on reputation instead of character, society is following people who would be categorized as evil or selfish if their character was revealed.  

Another recent example of a figure that was elevated by society because of reputation is Harvey Weinstein.  Weinstein focused on building a reputation and became Hollywood’s star movie producer; however, when people began revealing his character, in which he sexually assaulted many actresses, his reputation crumbled. He has ultimately become a notorious figure in society and we should be ashamed that these are the types of people we are choosing as role models or as representatives of our country.

We need to realize that what people portray as their outward image is not always who they are on the inside. The challenge that now faces us is our ability to see through a person’s reputation and go deeper and judge their character. We need to find the people we are drawn to not because of what they put on social media, but because of their actions and how they treat others. I challenge you the next time you are voting for someone or meet someone new to try to go beneath the shell of their reputation and see if that person is worthy of how people perceive them.