What is respect?

Click this player to hear an audio reading of this page:
The word respect is a familiar word. However, because it is so familiar, it would be rare to consider it closely. How much respect could we have for the word respect?

The idea of respect implies attentiveness and a willingness to directly observe some person or thing and recognize it for what it actually is. Respect literally means to look again at something, such as to see something about it that one has not already seen.

The word respect is related to the words inspect, spectator, special, specific and spectrum (as in the spectrum of visible light). When we inspect something to identify the specific qualities of the thing, we could call that demonstrating interest or even "showing our respect for it."

For example, in a professional sporting event, we may occasionally notice a violation of the rules that is called a "professional foul." That is when a participant knows that what they are doing is breaking the rules, but they prefer to risk being caught and penalized rather than to let the game go on without interruption. Professional fouls are typically flagrant attempts to disrupt a clear scoring opportunity by the opposing team. For instance, if it is illegal to grab someone's shirt at a particular time, an athlete may use both hands to conspicuously grab the opponent's shirt and tug the opponent in a way that "breaks up" a probable scoring play. They are intentionally risking a penalty (even expecting it).

That is not a disrespect for the rules of the game. That is a respectful attention to the rules of the game and the very selective violating of those rules.

Next: What is disrespect?

CLICK HERE TO SEND A MESSAGE.