Virtually ever since humans began roaming the Earth, there has existed an ongoing debate about whether humans are inherently good or evil. In this paper, I will first summarize and analyze three arguments from philosophers far before our time. In the first discussion, Mencius conveys that humans are fundamentally good. In the following discussions, Xunzi and Plato contend that humans are inherently evil. I will conclude the paper with the argument that the views expressed by Xunzi provide are the strongest of those examined in this paper.
Mencius argues that humans are fundamentally good by establishing that every person has within himself or herself a sense of sympathy and compassion for others. Mencius directly states that “no man is devoid of a heart sensitive to the suffering of others” (“Introducing Philosophy,” page 462). He then provides a hypothetical example of a man sighting a child about to fall into a well. Mencius argues that this man would “certainly be moved to compassion” (“Introducing Philosophy,” page 463) and would save the child. In that split-second decision, the man saved the child on accord of his own sympathy without thought of positive praise from his parents, villagers, or friends, or because he disliked the sound of the child’s cry. The man’s actions were not malicious or selfish, but were instead driven by a sense of concern and consideration rooted in the human race.
Mencius then contends that every human has four ‘germs:’ benevolence, dutifulness, observance of the rites, and wisdom. He maintains that any person devoid of any one of these germs is not human. A person who denies these germs within themselves is only crippling his or her own potential. These germs can be found in a person’s occupatio...
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...humans depart from their original nature of evil in order to be good. While walking through a department store, it is not uncommon to see young children running away from their parents or making a scene, a behavior not found in older folk. From personal experience, it is much rarer to see a group of fifty-year olds fighting over a television on ‘Black Friday’ than a group of teenagers. As is demonstrated here, people are born evil but learn correct manners as they grow and can realize goodness.
In this paper, I examined the argument by Mencius that humans are fundamentally good and the arguments by Xunzi and Plato that humans are fundamentally evil. Of the arguments discussed in this paper, I found that the one presented by Mencius was the strongest. But while I may have found that humans are inherently evil, the debate will surely rage on for centuries to come.
“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: It is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world” (Lewis, 1994, p. 91). Throughout history man has had to struggle with the problem of evil. It is one of the greatest problems of the world. Unquestionably, there is no greater challenge to man’s faith then the existence of evil and a suffering world. The problem can be stated simply: If God is an all-knowing and all-loving God, how can He allow evil? If God is so good, how can He allow such bad things to happen?Why does He allow bad things to happen to good people? These are fundamental questions that many Christians and non-Christians set out to answer.
On The Genealogy of Morals, Essay I refers to the second stage of human morality—the emergence of the concepts of "Good" and "Evil" as categories o...
The Problem of Evil is the question that asks if God is perfectly benevolent, all-powerful, and all-knowing, then how can he allow evil to exist? Many philosophers have tried to answer this age-old question, often focusing on the intellect and the will. This essay will explore and compare the ways in which Descartes, Leibniz, and Berkeley each attempt to solve this dilemma.
...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.
Phillip Pullman, a British author, once wrote, “I stopped believing there was a power of good and a power of evil that were outside us. And I came to believe that good and evil are names for what people do, not for what they are”(goodreads.com). Pullman’s quotation on the actions of man being the source of good and evil closely relate to morality, principles regarding the distinction of right and wrong or a person’s values. The question of what human morality truly is has been pondered by philosophers, common folk, and writers for thousands of years. However, sometimes a person’s ethics are unclear; he or she are not wholly good or bad but, rather, morally ambiguous.
In a Man 's Nature is Evil, men are depicted as evil since birth. Hsün Tzu declares that "Man 's nature is evil; goodness is the result of conscious activity" (Tzu 84). He speaks about how men are born with fondness for certain aspects of life such as profit, envy and beauty. Consequently, obtaining these aspects would lead to a life of violence, crime and recklessness. According to Tzu, men are born with a pleasure for profit. However, this need for riches will cause a man to have conflicts and altercations in his life. This is due to the fact that man will have such a great urge to obtain profit in life that he will go to all means necessary, including violence. Man is also born with envy and hate; it is not something he is taught. The internal struggle these two attributes have to offer will once
What draws the line between good and evil? Individuals have the power to choose either one in their actions. Do factors such as a situation, the environment, or a learned behavior have an influence on human behavior? Individuals are influenced by situations which make them behave differently than normal. Individuals have the need to be accepted in society. What causes individuals to have the feeling of being accepted in society in order to fit in? The hypothesis suggests everyone is influenced by their environment and by certain situations. Society has painted the image that individuals need to be accepted by others and are willing to forget themselves in order to get accepted.
Human nature is the most debated topic to date. Many people think that mankind is programmed to be evil; on the other hand people argue that it is naturally good. Nathaniel Hawthorne gave his argument with the novel, The Scarlet Letter. The Scarlet Letter showed that mankind is innately good by Chillingworth’s measures, Hester’s capitulates and Dimmesdale’s noble qualities.
“…And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” (Matthew 6:9-13) As it says in the Bible, we wish to be led astray from evil. However, evil is a very curious subject. For most intensive purposes, evil can be described as cruel, heinous, and unnecessary punishment. Evil is a relatively accepted concept in the world today, although it is not completely understood. Evil is supposedly all around us, and at all times. It is more often than not associated with a figure we deem Satan. Satan is said to be a fallen angel, at one point God’s favorite. Supposedly Satan tries to spite God by influencing our choices, and therefore our lives. However, this presents a problem: The Problem of Evil. This argues against the existence of God. Can God and evil coexist?
Human nature is one of the most core concerns of every Chinese philosopher we have studied this semester. Each one holds a particular stance when they address human’s natural state, and this very much contributes to their philosophy overall. For example, Confucius, Mencius and Han Fei Tzu all differ in their ideas of human nature, and this shaped each one’s particular philosophy.
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The following analysis deals with the nature and source of evil and whether, given our innate motives and moral obligation, we willingly choose to succumb to our desires or are slaves of our passion. From this argument, I intend to show that our human nature requires that we play into our desires in order to affirm our free will. This is not to say that our desires are necessarily evil, but quite the opposite. In some sense, whatever people actually want has some relative value to them, and that all wanted things contain some good. But given that there are so many such goods and a whole spectrum of varying arrangements among them, that there is no way we can conceive anything as embodying an overall good just because it is to some degree wanted by one or a group of persons. In this light, there arises conflict which can only be resolved by a priority system defined by a code, maybe of moral foundations, which allows us to analyze the complexities of human motivation. I do not intend to set down the boundaries of such a notion, nor do I want to answer whether it benefits one to lead a morally good life, but rather want to find out how the constructs of good and evil affect our freedom to choose.
At times, Confucius has been nicknamed the Socrates of the east because there are countless comparisons in their lessons. Both stressed the value of education and the function which it plays in the shaping the character of an individual. This shaping of personality may be viewed as the development of good feature upon the environment of human nature (Legge, James and Trans 47). This description essay will discuss the evidence that Confucius gives to ascertain that human nature are correct.
...ing, it is safe to say that humans are not by nature evil but instead, they are good but easily influenced by the environment and society to act in evil way and do such evil things. You choose the road you want to take; either it’s the bad road or the good road. We are all born to live a life where we will be faced with good and evil things. We were not born to be an evil or bad person, but as you get older you make that choice. What do you want to be remembered as: the good or the bad person? Choose to be good over being bad because the rewards to your family, your friend, and yourself will always outweigh the bad.
Xunzi believes that human nature is inherintally evil and that people are born their sensory desires which, when indulged, will lead to ‘licentiousness and chaos’.