Honesty vs. Integrity--Taylor

The clear differences between honesty and integrity are evident in how people live their lives. Sure, they can be the same concept, right? The short, easy answer is no, they cannot be. Honesty is one of various components of integrity. One can be honest without having integrity but it’s not possible to have integrity without living honestly.  J.C. Watts, a politician, has said that "character is doing the right things when nobody's looking. There are too many people who think that the only thing that's right is to get by, and the only thing that's wrong is to get caught." This statement proves that people have the wrong idea of what living their life with integrity consists of and are most likely only living with a sense of honesty.

Honesty can be defined as being truthful and fair. It is quite simple to understand, people either live their life honestly or they don’t. There is no room to try and negotiate this idea. People may tell white lies once in a while to spare themselves from others but at the end of the day they still aren’t living a truthful life. Also, just because someone tells the truth, it doesn't mean that they have the right intentions or moral character. Honesty only requires that people tell the truth, so it leaves room for people to act immorally in many other ways. For example, if someone breaks a valuable object and doesn't tell anyone, they still remain honest. If they aren't asked about it, they essentially still haven't deceived anyone. However, just because they haven't lied, by them not owning up to it on their own, they don't have good moral character.

When we look at the definition of integrity, it consists more than just honesty. It is a person’s adherence to moral and ethical principles. Essentially, it is the soundness of a person’s moral character. People who abide by their morals follow them on a day to day basis and don’t disregard them when they potentially become inconvenient or unprofitable. A person with integrity would have admitted to breaking the valuable object, without being asked about it because they would feel that it’s the right thing to do. Not only is integrity composed of more than honesty but it also more rigorous to maintain. For example, companies that sell products can maintain honesty by mentioning the potential harmful materials of the product. But, if the company wanted to have integrity, they would refrain from using potentially harmful materials in their products all together for the safety and wellbeing of their customers.

In conclusion, living with integrity has more value and better shows a person's moral character than only having honesty. While having honesty is a good trait to have, there is much more that goes into a person's moral character. A person who tells the truth doesn’t necessarily have a good character but those with integrity maintain their morals and values no matter what they may encounter or how difficult it could be to do so.

“Integrity Quotes .” BrainyQuote, www.brainyquote.com/topics/integrity.