Moral Polyphony: Reconstructing Moral Phylosophy Beyond Rawls, Habernas, and Kohlberg

From intersubjective meaning-making to post-secular spirituality.

This vision seeks not a moral monoculture, but a moral ecology, where diverse orientations to the good coexist, contest, and co-evolve without collapsing into nihilism or authoritarianism.

The Setiawan Moral Hierarchy is not merely a sociological model, it is the scaffolding for a new critical, pluralist, and transcendentally aware moral philosophy. Its future lies not in replacing existing frameworks, but in translating between them, creating ethical bridges where today there are walls.

6. Theoretical Reconstruction

In the wake of the Setiawan Moral Hierarchy's diagnostic potential and interpretive richness, this section sets forth a constructive philosophical framework. It proposes a moral theory that resists essentialism, embraces asymmetry, and foregrounds plural loci of ethical meaning, while still offering a coherent structure for moral evaluation and agency.

6.1 Key Principles: Moral Polyphony, Value Conflict, and Power Dynamics

At the heart of this reconstruction lies the recognition of moral polyphony---the coexistence of multiple, often incommensurable moral voices within individuals, communities, and institutions. These voices may arise from:

• Affective morality grounded in empathy or emotional intuition (Layer 1),

• Normative intersubjectivity such as cultural customs and shared identity (Layer 2),

• Authoritative sources like religious scriptures, legal systems, or charismatic leaders (Layer 3),

• Structural forces embedded in ideological and discursive regimes (Layer 4),

•