Honor in the sense of "if I do good things I will be respected, if I do bad things people will be repulsed by my very presence, and this system makes me actually materially change my behavior for the better and not just be a hypocrite".
Honor in the sense of "if I do good things I will be respected, if I do bad things people will be repulsed by my very presence, and this system makes me actually materially change my behavior for the better and not just be a hypocrite".
Sure, codes of honor were invented as a way to make men act in ways that didn't benefit themselves, but benefited their rulers.
Social belonging is a very powerful emotion. Doing what your tribe considers virtuous acts is immensely rewarding in brain chemicals. Likewise being ostracized is powerfully hurtful, and some humans will commit suicide just to stop the pain.