| Trying to work out informal agreements isn't so bad, depending upon circumstance. But these are personal, not business, relationships, and cannot be overburdened with rules. Any agreement here is, at best, like an ordinary (not solemn) promise: people generally feel free to break promises when, for example, unexpected exigencies arise that would make fulfillment disproportionately burdensome. Even with a sense that one should make all due effort, no one, for example, will feel he has to take his children to Chuckie Cheese if a crisis arises at work. At most, one may feel obliged to compensate the disappointment. Even that is not necessary, beyond an apology, if it would be unreasonable to reproach someone under the circumstances. For example, one would not expect someone who promised to visit to "make amends" if there were a medical emergency. In general, then, such commitments, though they should carry some moral weight, are contingent and subject to judgment....... |
