Is human nature fundamentally good or bad? Mengzi argues for the instinctive goodness of human nature; however, admits our inherent goodness must be encouraged through propriety.
Mengzi treats nature as one’s natural “potential, inclinations, or capacities” (Liu 68). It is important to note, however, that he only views nature as the beginning. Mengzi believes that the way we behave as mature humans is the result of how successful we are in fulfilling our nature. Other Confucians, like Xunxi, argued “human nature is bad; his goodness is the result of man’s deliberate effort” (86); however, Mengzi believed the contrary to be true. According to Mengzi, nature refers to the natural inclinations of humans. Thus, any development in the opposite direction is a direct consequence of some form of external stimuli.
Mengzi views nature as a “species-specific notion” (68) that separate us from lesser animals. More specifically, humans are distinct from animals because they are born with moral virtues. Mengzi believed that because all humans belong to the same species, all humans possess the same universal nature. He goes further by claiming that due to our collective universal nature, any differences demonstrated by mature humans are owing to an “external environment and individual effort” (69). For the purposes of this paper, let us assume that Mengzi is correct in his argument for the innate goodness of human nature.
So if humans naturally tend toward virtue and all possess the sprouts of morality within, what rationalizes the inconsistency between instinctive goodness and manifested badness? Although Mengzi highlights the heart/mind of our nature desires moral virtue, he also acknowledges that “desire for physical comfort and material g...
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... chef. While it is true that a human’s physical and biological attributes are determined biologically, no two humans are actually identical. That being said, how can all human’s morals be a biologically determined constant? It would be more plausible to think that while humans have the capacity for moral virtue, the extent on which they are able to actualize this capacity differs as much between people as physical traits such as taste. This leads us to another criticism. The second example is also flawed. Consider the Iron Chef Bobby Flay. He is known for, amongst other things, being a world renowned chef as well as a television show called BBQ with Bobby Flay. Although many people would view his cooking as amazing, these tastes are not shared by all (a vegetarian for example). This is just another example of his flawed belief of a shared and universal human nature.
There may been times when people have been treated unfairly, just because of their appearance or their social life.
Throughout the past centuries, the concept of instinctive morality has been debated back and forth. One philosophy with a strong viewpoint on this subject is Puritanism, because they believe that since the beginning of the world, people have been born sinners. Puritans felt that Adam and Eve’s temptation by Satan had cursed all of humanity to be born evil. A few decades later, Deists shifted their ideas away from religion and believed that every person could choose whether they were good or bad. Then, Transcendental ideas began the thought that humans were born innately good, and that God and Satan had nothing to do with people’s morality. Throughout the major literary philosophies in the United States, one can see how the innate character of a human progresses from being evil to being innately good.
Instead human nature is shown to exhibit both good and bad with dynamic results. Human nature encourages us to feel and experience a range of emotions. Happiness, sadness, love and hate are all natural feeling that helps to shape our personality. To help the elderly, to feed the poor, to shelter the homeless, to nurture a baby are all elements of human nature and incorporated into the way humans interact within society. The basic human emotions that drive people are love and hate, within these two come other emotions, sympathy, forgivness, revenge and jealousy.
Many people have different views on the moral subject of good and evil or human nature. It is the contention of this paper that humans are born neutral, and if we are raised to be good, we will mature into good human beings. Once the element of evil is introduced into our minds, through socialization and the media, we then have the potential to do bad things. As a person grows up, they are ideally taught to be good and to do good things, but it is possible that the concept of evil can be presented to us. When this happens, we subconsciously choose whether or not to accept this evil. This where the theories of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke become interesting as both men differed in the way they believed human nature to be. Hobbes and Locke both picture a different scene when they express human nature.
Inwardly examining his own nature, man would prefer to see himself as a virtuously courageous being designed in the image of a divine supernatural force. Not to say that the true nature of man is a complete beast, he does posses, like many other creatures admirable traits. As author Matt Ridley examines the nature of man in his work The Origins of Virtue, both the selfish and altruistic sides of man are explored. Upon making an honest and accurate assessment of his character, it seems evident that man is not such a creature divinely set apart from the trappings of selfishness and immorality. Rather than put man at either extreme it seems more accurate to describe man as a creature whose tendency is to look out for himself first, as a means of survival.
...ut more importantly Mencius' core conception that human nature is also aware of its actions, and considers the well-being of others and that people are morally obligated to do so is also key to attaining our full potential. This conception of human nature and proper order together is what has shaped East Asian political and social thought for centuries. It is credited with creating an East Asia that is economically robust, and socially coherent and once again will be the center of human society in the decades to come. And contrary to popular Western belief, East Asian political thought does appreciate the necessity of the individual in defining society. In fact the only way to attain our human nature is to healthily self-cultivate ourselves morally and materially so we can reach our highest potential and in that way be a valued and contributing member to society.
Over the years, many scientists and archeologists have traveled the world in search of more clues about our past. Among those found was the preserved mummy of a Neolithic man buried in ice. Otzi, a name the mummy earned from the Otztal Alps where he was unearthed, was dated to have lived over 5300 years ago. From the moment of discovery, the Iceman served as a subject of study that pushed back much of what we predicted the human timeline to be. This included the copper age, agriculture, as well as complex crafting of clothing and utilities. Until more recent studies were done it was assumed that Otzi had died at the hands of natural causes such as freezing in a storm. This, however, was proven wrong when further investigation shows that Otzi had died of a more aggressive cause of death. So why was Otzi killed on the high mountain tops of the Otztal Alps? My goal in this paper is to prove why the Iceman was murdered all those years ago.
Consequently, the actions of Adam and Eve have opened the doors for the two types of evil we see today, moral and natural. “Natural evil is the consequence of moral evil” (Elwell,...
Thomas Hobbs and John Locke have two very opposing viewpoints on human nature. Locke believes that human nature is innately good; Hobbs thinks that human nature knows right from wrong, but is naturally evil and that no man is entirely “good”. Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of the classic novel The Scarlet Letter, believes that every man is innately good and Hawthorne shows that everyone has a natural good side by Hester’s complex character, Chillingworth’s actions and Dimmesdale’s selfless personality.
Central to any study of the humanities is the human condition – our nature, which has historically shown that it is equally capable of both good and evil deeds – and the problem that arises from it; specifically, why do humans suffer? Many philosophies and religions have their own account for this aspect of humanity, and we find that what the accounts have in common is each explains the human condition in terms that are similar to how that institution of thought explains the true nature of reality.
The four bodyguards immediately split up, and two people began to charge at Jian Chen with their Saint Weapons raised. They quickly entered the battle, and began to attack Jian Chen together with the Peak Saint Master strength middle aged man.
Confucius, the founding philosopher of Confucianism, never explicitly details what he believes to be the inherent nature of humans. However, through his teachings and writings, his opinion can be understood to be that humans reach good nature, through self-cultivation and self-improvement. He believes that humans are improvable and teachable, but lack virtue. “Confucius
The understanding of human nature is the concept that there is a set of inherent distinguishing characteristics, including ways of thinking, feeling, and acting that all humans tend to possess (Winkler, 1996). My basic view of human nature correlates with Charles Darwin’s nature vs. nurture theory. Human nature is influenced by both nature and nurture. Nature is all that a man brings with himself into the world, and nurture is every influence that affects him after his birth. An individual’s morals, values, and beliefs are developed from the nurturing aspect of their life. The environment that an individual is raised in creates their human nature. Then they go through life developing more upon their own morals, values, and beliefs. The nature vs. nurture theory is an every changing concept, and I believe that human nature changes for each individual based on their life experiences.
In this essay, I will discuss and define both speciesism and moral individualism according to Paola Cavalieri’s book, The Animal Question. Additionally, I will provide my opinion on which is the strongest argument for speciesism and why I still disagree with it.
Confucius is known for stressing that human nature is intrinsically good. He stresses that human beings are born with the ability for differentiating between wrong and right. A person may not be aware from infancy which acts are tolerable and which acts are not, but all offspring feel shame, and once the children learn which deeds are bad or good, they have a normal tendency to consent of the former and criticize of the latter (Van and Bryan 27).