Władysław Witwicki’s Personal Ethics – Ambition as a Motivation to Self-Improvement

Abstract

This article presents Władysław Witwicki’s concepts of ambition and cratism (the drive for power/efficacy) as the foundation of his project for a secular ethics and human self-improvement. It analyzes the psychological and philosophical origins of the theory, regarding the sense of power and its significance for the individual’s moral development. Ambition is portrayed as a positive disposition that fosters self-improvement and the cultivation of responsibility. The article also discusses the premises of a secular ethics grounded in reason, conscience, and social instinct. The conclusions indicate that Witwicki’s thought remains relevant to contemporary discourse on motivation and ethics, demonstrating the connection between the theory of cratism, ambition, and the concept of human self-improvement as a coherent philosophical project.