Manual of Assent and Execution — Role Taxonomy

 

Manual of Assent and Execution — Role Taxonomy

System architecture: Dave Kelly, 2026. This section defines the structure, classification, and operational function of roles within the system. Roles organize execution without introducing value into externals.

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I. Definition of Role

A role is a structured situational position occupied by the agent that determines:

• the types of impressions likely to arise
• the relevant objects of aim among indifferents
• the constraints on appropriate means
• the expectations governing execution

A role does not introduce value. It specifies context for rational execution.

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II. Role Axiom

No role alters the internalist value structure. All roles operate under the invariant rule:

Only assent is good or bad. All role-specific objects of aim are indifferent.

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III. Role Classes

Roles are classified into four primary types.

1. Fundamental Role — Rational Agent

This role is constant and non-optional.

• Definition: The agent as a self-governing rational faculty
• Primary Function: Assent regulation
• Constraint: Must not assign value to externals

This role governs all others and cannot be suspended.

2. Biological Role

• Examples: organism, embodied being
• Typical Aims: nourishment, rest, basic maintenance
• Constraint: bodily states are preferred or dispreferred indifferents

3. Relational Roles

• Examples: parent, partner, friend, family member
• Typical Aims: care, communication, protection, instruction
• Constraint: other persons are external; their states are not goods or evils

4. Functional / Social Roles

• Examples: employee, manager, citizen, teacher, judge
• Typical Aims: task completion, coordination, truth-telling, justice within role
• Constraint: outcomes and recognition are indifferent

5. Situational Roles

• Definition: temporary roles arising from specific circumstances
• Examples: driver in traffic, patient, customer, witness
• Constraint: defined by immediate context; subject to rapid change

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IV. Role Activation

At any moment, one or more roles may be active.

The agent must identify:

• the primary operative role
• any secondary roles generating constraints

Role conflict does not generate moral conflict. It generates complexity in execution among indifferents.

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V. Role Function in Execution

Roles determine execution through three functions:

1. Object of Aim Specification

Each role defines appropriate objects of aim within its domain.

2. Constraint on Means

Roles restrict which means are appropriate or inappropriate.

3. Situation Typing

Roles generate recurring situation-types that can be pre-identified.

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VI. Role-Invariant Rule

In all roles:

• No object of aim is a good
• No outcome is a good or evil
• No role success constitutes virtue
• No role failure constitutes vice

Virtue and vice remain exclusively at the level of assent.

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VII. Role Conflict Handling

When multiple roles generate competing demands:

1. Identify all operative roles
2. Identify the objects of aim associated with each
3. Evaluate means for coherence with reason
4. Select execution without assigning value to any outcome

Conflict is resolved at the level of rational selection, not value prioritization.

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VIII. Role Stability and Change

Roles may:

• persist (e.g., parent)
• shift (e.g., employee to citizen)
• terminate (e.g., completed task)

The Fundamental Role (rational agent) remains constant across all transitions.

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IX. Summary Principle

Roles organize execution but do not determine value. They specify what is appropriate to aim at and how to act, while leaving the locus of good and evil entirely within assent.