Genuine tragedies in the world are not conflicts between right and wrong. They are conflicts between two rights. ~Georg Hegel
The other day, I had a conversation with an old friend from college. It was more of a spirited debate, actually, about the nature of good and evil, right and wrong etc. My world view, will, I'm quite sure, be of no surprise to you--I believe "good" is a matter of perspective and convenience,
and that "right" is determined by whoever has "the bigger gun" so to speak.
(This is not a political world-view--meaning, regardless of the politics of the times, I always think this way).
I don't know if I am right about this, but it seems to me that the good people of the world outweigh the bad. My perspective on this rarely shifts, and is also reinforced when tragedies such as the one in Parkland, FL, or Aurora, CO, or Newtown, Connecticut, or Ferguson, MO, or San Bernardino, CA, or Berlin Germany, Boston MA, Nice, France (I could go on but why depress us all further) occur. I believe it is an objectively unfair universe we inhabit, although I have a hunch it has a way of righting its ownself from time to time.
So the debate between my friend and I ensued.
My friend's world view was quite a bit different than mine--much more idealistic and much more indicative of his personality. In his eyes, my friend (his name is Ahmed) is certain that good always conquers evil, the meek shall inherit the Earth, all you need is love etc etc etc. He goes on to posit that good things come to good people and eventually, all the pieces will fall into place if you live a good life. Seriously, that's really what he believes. He's a really sweet guy--it boggles me.
(I keep him around, this college buddy, because he gives me hope, and when I am feeling way too misanthropic and cynical for my own good, he gives me balance. All of the other times I mock him shamelessly for his "dreamy" and (what I consider to be) unrealistic view of the world).
So, my question(s) for you this week is--where in our spectrum does your world view fall?
Do you think people are mostly bad or mostly good?
What determines that?
Do you think that the person who does the right thing always wins?
If so, what's the prize?
Are there clear-cut answers about what's right and what's wrong?
How is it all measured? Let's get a little Lang-y and tell a story (real or metaphorical--no matter) to illustrate/exemplify your points.
Try to think of an example about which you feel passionately. It is usually passion that dictates what your true beliefs are. However, when we use passion to describe or talk about them, we run the risk of sounding like we can't be taken seriously. So, try to temper your passion (your pathos) with your logic (your logos).
I don’t believe anyone is completely good or completely evil. Everyone does some good and bad things in their lives, some are just more significant than others. I hate using the words good and evil because I feel they aren’t good descriptive words. Morals are sometimes blurry and it is much more complex than simply good or evil. Someone could have done great things in their life and it is hard to say if doing one horrible thing makes them evil and erases all the good they have done. It comes down to your personal perspective and if you are able to subjectively acknowledge the good someone has done along with the bad. That being said it is hard to judge humans as a whole and if they are mostly “evil” or “good”. It depends on their actions and the severity of the good and bad things they are done and if the bad outweighs the good. I don’t think the person who does the right thing always wins, sometimes people can do bad things and cheat to get ahead. There is no clear cut right and wrong thing to do. It comes down to personal perspective and what someone feels is the best thing to do in that situation. Sometimes all the options are bad and there isn’t a clear cut thing to do that feels right. I can’t think of a personal example so I am going to be making a reference to my favorite show One Tree Hill because it fits this prompt perfectly. In the show Dan thought his brother Keith tried to kill him in a fire and was unaware that it was actually his ex wife Deb. This led Dan to shoot and kill his brother Keith. Keith was beloved by many and although no one knew Dan killed him, Dan eventually confessed out of guilt once he realized Keith wasn’t the one who tried to kill him. Dan spent a lot of time in jail and when he came out he was determined to patch up his relationship with his son and get to know his grandson. Dan ends up saving his grandson from a kidnapper and he also died taking a bullet for his son. Although Dan did horrible things he also did good ones and died trying to make things right. This just goes to show that the line between good and evil is very blurred and most of the time it is impossible to determine.
ReplyDeleteI believe the world is what you make it. As corny as it sounds. Looking at the population, I believe people are mostly bad. When I say “bad” I mean negative, inconsiderate, and miserable. I see people complaining and talking negatively more often than I see positively spoken people. I know people who are positive and open minded have bad things happen to them, but I think that it makes that person stronger. It’s important to keep that mindset or you’ll just end up hating life. Life is unpredictable, good people don’t always win but they do have more success with their mind and life. They gain happiness. I don’t think there is any clear-cut answers to what is right from wrong all the time because what might be right to one person is wrong to another. Determining right from wrong is almost like looking through a kaleidoscope. Kaleidoscopes have different shapes and colors reflecting off each-other. When one person looks through it they might notice a vibrant purple in a circular pattern. When the next person looks through, they switch it around and see dark orange tones in rectangular patterns. This is how people determine right from wrong in real life. A father selling dope on the street is right for him so he can support his kids, meanwhile a cop seeing a man selling dope is wrong. What determines right from wrong is the perspective and situation.
ReplyDeleteI think people have the ability to be good or bad but the world focuses on the bad more than the good. The bad is noticed to a greater extent because most of us want to find the bad and drag each other down. The good is something that happens but doesn't get enough credit. We all see right from wrong differently based on the directions we took. We start at the same spot and become pulled and pushed to places that add various sights to our memory. Those sights reshape our judgement. I think the person who does the right thing doesn't always win because what is the prize they would be winning? They gain a good conscience for doing the right thing but I don't believe good is guaranteed to come to those who accomplish the good. I believe doing good can higher the chance of receiving something good in return. The ones who do bad and have no hope for the good have themselves to blame for allowing negative vibes to control their judgement.
ReplyDeleteSimply calling something or someone good or bad doesn’t amount to anything. There is so much more that needs to be weighed that the words good or bad cannot provide. So therefore, there really are no clear-cut answers on what’s right and wrong because it depends on your viewpoint. Honestly, it’s just all about perspective. In my very pessimistic opinion, I believe that the world is filled with mostly bad people. This is due to the constant violence and threats we live with every day, and the fact that almost everyone is driven by money. For instance, instead of actually doing some thing that benefits the country, people work together to help their business prosper, even if it hurts other businesses. There are dozens of conspiracies that relate to more specific things like the electric car. There was even a movie called “Who Killed the Electric Car” made it 2006. In addition to this, there are also a ton of shootings, murders, rape, drugs, and the list goes on. Obviously, this doesn’t make everyone a bad person, but it definitely impacts our reputation. I seem to think that sometimes the bad outweighs the good because it is so absolutely terrible that in the moment in seems we could focus on nothing else, even though we just go about living our lives the next day.
ReplyDeleteI understand that there are bad things and bad people all over the world. However, I almost always try to pick out the good in everyone. The negative parts aren't what matter most, it's the positive ones that you'd want to remember. Like you've already said, I think that perspective and the situation is what separates the good from bad. The right and wrong thing to say aren't concrete. Anything of that matter is clear-cut. In my opinion, the right thing isn't always the best choice. For example, telling someone a horrible truth that has the potential to break their heart, may not be the best thing to do. People lie all the time, but sometimes it's easier to keep others from the truth in order to steer them clear of heartbreak. There isn't a right or wrong answer when judging a situation. It may depend on how well you know the person, what you think of them, and if there is another person involved maybe your view on them is important as well. Past experiences may also persuade your mind to take a particular side, or cause chaos for you to even think about certain things. It all comes down to what you personally see with your own eyes. Nobody has the same view as you, or can see what you see. You are influenced by the people around you and more importantly yourself. With or without being given background to a situation, no one is actually right or wrong. Everyone is titled to their own opinion, and allowed to think what they want. Sometime you may be told that you're wrong and that's perfectly fine, life isn't always fair and we don't always get what we want. Bad things happen to good people, and sometime's bad people don't get what they "deserve," but everything is based on perspective and your point of view. We're all different for a reason.
ReplyDeleteI think there are people that are more positive than others, and there are people who simply despise everything and everyone. Although I think people forget why a person might be so rude or pessimistic. You have to keep into consideration of what may be going on outside of the room or place you see this person, all they know is probably hate because that’s how they were raised. Just like those who weren’t raised with manners or morals, if you see them doing something you’d never do it may not be their fault. Nothing good in life is ever handed to you and the world is such a cruel place that I’ve taught myself to never expect the best of any situation even if I know for a fact the outcome will be in my favor, you never know when life will bite you in the ass and I want to be prepared for that. I’m absolutely obsessed with space. The idea of space, its abyss, the darkness that lies behind it and the fact that we do not know what’s out there is so fascinating to me it could never bore me. In my favorite movie “Interstellar” with Matthew McConaughey (Cooper), his daughter in the movie Murphy begged him not to go to space because she hate the idea of being away from him for so long. He ignored her desires because the earth was becoming a Dust Bowl slowly making it uninhabitable. Cooper was sent to go through a wormhole and across the galaxy to find which of the three planets they discovered on earth that could be a new home for the human race. In the process Cooper was going to be killed by Mann but was eventually saved by Amelia, they could not reach the planet so it added another 51 years on earth but felt like less than a day for them. Cooper finds himself in a tesseract where he is able to communicate with his daughter Murph through the bookshelf him and his son would mock her for because she believed a ghost knocked off her books but really it was gravity and him in the future trying to tell her “convince me to stay don’t let me leave”. All in all he reunites with his daughter who developed a remodeled plan of the theory they worked on BUT she’s old and on her deathbed and he looks the same age as he left. In the end the human race is saved but Cooper will never get the time back with his daughter, his mentor, father, son and daughter died while he lives the rest of life looking like he’s 36 when in reality he should be an old man. Insane and sad but that’s what you get for trying to save the world.
ReplyDeleteI think people are mostly good, but it all depends on perspective. An action someone does might be a good act in one’s person’s view and a bad act in another. For example, a poor person stealing bread for their family, the act is in good spirit for the poor person, but seen as a bad act buy the store people. The person who does the right thing doesn’t always win. Sometimes doing the wrong thing can be the right thing, so I guess if you are doing the wrong thing that is the right thing, then you are really doing the right thing. Since wrong and right are both based on perspective, there is no clear cut answer to what is wrong and what’s right, unless it is something obvious like murder. I have lied many times to people as in my eyes, it was the good thing to do as it protected them or me. Not telling someone anything can be a right decision as well as a wrong decision too.
ReplyDeleteThe world loves to focus on the bad more than the good. It’s human nature to focus on the negatives more than the positives. I honestly believe it’s whatever you make of it. People who do good might necessarily always come out as the winner to other people but the majority of the time they come out as a winner to themselves. They have a good feeling with min themselves no that they did good, and that’s honestly the best prize. The question of right and wrong is still uncertain. Cursing may be horrible to some people and to others it may simply be an adjective. There are certain things ,like the N word or talking about people’s insecurities, that people know are wrong to talk about. For instance if you make a sandwich you put the spread on the sandwich and then you put the meat and cheese on it. The way you put the meat and cheese on the sandwich doesn’t matter but if you were to put the spread on last that would be wrong. Even if you put the piece of bread that’s supposed to go on top under the meat and cheese it would still be wrong.
ReplyDeletethis posted through my personal email by accident
DeleteI don’t think that people are mostly good or bad. I think that how people act are a result of how they were raised. But, we tend to focus more on the bad than the good these days. This is because bad people and things seem to stick in our mind more, due to us wanting the world to be perfect and happy. I don’t think that the person that does the right thing always wins because it always doesn’t get noticed. Also, if people are doing something good, it’s not always for the prize because not everyone wants one. But, the prize to me is happiness. Whenever you do something you, you expect to feel happy or good after, but that doesn’t always happen. There isn’t a clear cut answer for what is right and wrong because sometimes we are forced to do the wrong thing to make life better later on. Your future is what measures it. One example of this is my parent’s divorce. The whole process of divorce and visitation is a bad thing to go through, especially for a child. But, it had to be done because without it, my parents would still be unhappy and fighting all the time. This shows that life isn’t always fair and we are forced to do things that we don’t want to do. Without our own happiness being the drive to do many things, our world would be very different.
ReplyDeleteI believe that people are mostly good, nobody is just born bad or evil.The environment that a person grows up in determines that. The way a person was raised, the struggles that he/she went through, and the action the child’s role model takes in time of crises determines how the person grows up and acts. Every child’s role model is a parent or a guardian, and without realizing it, a child analyzes the action of adults in time of crises. When faced with the same problem the person will likely take the action that the adult took. Not only that but also act the way the parents acted. The age of childhood is a very crucial time in developing of personality and thoughts. In my opinion, I think that the world is filled with mostly good people. I always had this hope that good always wins no matter what. Whether it takes a long time or not, good will always win. That is what I was taught when I was a kid, so that is what I believe in. Even though I feel like everything around me is proving the opposite, whether it is trump with his travel bans and the wall, or all the shootings, or racism, I still think it is still good in the world. Honestly, that is the only thing that I am hanging onto at this point, because if this is just a world filled with bad and evil people, then this is not a world I want to live in. There are still some people fighting for equality and peace, so as long as these people exist I still think it is good in the world. Even though I think that good overcomes evil, I do not think that the person who does the right thing always wins (material). Let me specify, a person might feel good that they did the right thing because there we are human and we all have a sense of guilt. When A person does the right thing, I think they are rewarded by the fact that they do not feel any guilt and the sense of relief, but they do not necessarily have to win anything materialistic. I think that sometimes the line between right and wrong is faded, and it comes down to a person’s beliefs and morals. For example abortion, (I know this is a touchy subject, I am sorry if I offend anyone, I don't mean it, please to come at me, just an opinion, general thoughts) morally abortion is wrong because that fetus could have been a person, will yea it doesn’t breath or walk yet, but it will and you just killed it. Even though it does not breath, doesn’t it still have a soul? You start thinking of what could have been. Now scientifically, A fetus is not a developed human yet and does not breath, so therefore, you can not kill it. You can take either side based on your beliefs and situation.
ReplyDeleteI believe that people do good things and people can do bad things, but there is no clear cut way to say whether or not someone should be considered a good person. The people that society see to be “good people” are people who have publicly done something good and gotten recognition for it. But there are people I guess you could say who do things behind the scenes without the recognition. Same goes with a “bad person”, what they may have done was done publicly and now given the label of a bad person. I don't think there is a clear cut way to measure something like this. Ultimately it's based off of a person's character, as well as how other people see the scale of good. And this like many other things in the world is based off perspective.
ReplyDeleteAlthough people may have their share of good or bad acts, that is not enough to define someone or a population. More than their actions, it is their mentality that defines whether they are good or bad; if someone commits a negative act, society defines that person by their terrible decision. However, not many people may understand the circumstances or inclination that led a perpetrator to commit the action that they did. Someone could be a drug dealer, for example, but they may be only doing so in order to support their impoverished family. Although their act was terrible, it was done for good reason. I do not believe that the person who always does the right thing wins; that depends on what that person would define winning as. Whether it is receiving money for performing a good deed or receiving a compliment for having good manners, what embodies winning to someone is in quite a broad range. There are no clear-cut answers as to what is right or wrong, as people have varying definitions of these words. Referring back to the example earlier, in the eyes of witnesses, a drug dealer may be seen doing something horrendous, though they may be doing it for good reason, such as to support their family.
ReplyDeleteI believe that whether you are good or evil is not always a clear cut path. Of course there are the obvious characteristics such as craving blood and mass destruction(evil) and donating to charity, giving something for the good of others and saving lives(good). But not every person is so easily categorized. Sometimes at the end of the day whether you are good or evil all depends on whose side you're on. If you're on the side that wins then they'll mark you down as a hero but if you're on the loosing side then most likely you'll be branded the villain. But that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what decides. There is so much more to it that I'd probably fry my laptop typing in all the minuscule details that go into the decision. And no, before it comes up, life is not a comic book, doing the right thing doesn't always make you a winner. Sometimes it does in which the prize could be anything from pride, self gratitude, remembrance as a good person or something tangible. But what happens, when you're playing in a game(could be any team sport). There is five seconds left, you have the ball on offense, and you have the best shot on the team. You see an opening and before you take it you see that the not so good kid is open as well. You make a split second decision and pass him the ball, Frisbee, weird oval rugby thing whatever. And he goes for it and misses. Oh by the way did I mention you were down by one? Now instead of the self gratitude from yourself and thanks from the kid that you were hoping for, you get the why did I do that from yourself and that kid feels like he/she lost it for the team. How good do you feel now? Where is that prize for trying to do the right thing?
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty optimistic about our world overall. I know that there are bad people and many things that people do wrong, but I believe the good outweighs the bad. Everyone makes mistakes and does bad things in their lives, but this doesn't mean they are evil or a bad person. Everyone has a bit of good and a bit of bad inside of them. Another big factor in this discussion is perspective. In one person's eyes, they could be doing the right thing, while others may view it as wrong. For example, sometimes poor people steal things just to get by. In their eyes, they are just doing what they have to do to survive and provide for their families. On the other hand, the person they stole from and many others will view them as evil people. Seeing both perspectives is an important skill in life. People are often criticized and receive hate for doing what they believed was right. Another thing that kind of sucks about the world is that the people who do right don't always win. People who do the wrong thing often will succeed, even though sometimes karma catches up with them. For example, many people in big business will be ruthless and cheat or push others down to get to the top. This is obviously not the right thing to do, but it's pretty effective and many of them succeed that way. Right or wrong in the end is truly about perspective and people need to learn to understand others' perspectives.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn’t work this way because that’s not how it’s measured. You can’t just see the people as either bad or good and you can not (also shouldn’t) judge if a person is good or bad. I believe that there aren’t any good people in this world nor bad people. I believe that every single person has a good side and a bad side and the reason why there are good people and bad people in this world simply relies on us deciding which side we will show to the world. The people we call “bad people” they simply let their bad side win over their good side but still, there’s a good side in them but it’s just too little that they can’t even see it anymore which made them forget that it even exists. We all do good things AND bad things. I can’t consider myself a good person because I do good things to people YOU can’t consider yourself a bad person because you do bad things to people either, no, we all do good things and bad things every single day meaning that we’re all both good and bad. I also believe that everyone has a different point of view on good and bad. Maybe the good things you do are considered bad for other people, for example, if I lied to you and told you that all people are good because they do good things then that means that the good things they do are good from my point of view and also their point of view which made me call them “good people”. But, if I believe that something is bad and someone does it then I’m going to say that this person is a bad person (I’ll never say that b/c that’s not how I measure it). See, there’s a bit of greediness in this because we were all raised under different circumstances which made us believe in different things as well as believing differently in the good and the bad and us judging or deciding if people are good or bad is not right because our good might be their bad and our bad might be their good. I think we all experience this every day like people judging us and deciding if we’re good or bad people and we might experience it w/ friends, family, etc, even when we meet new people most of them will decide if you’re a bad person or a good person from the first time they meet you (which is retarded).
ReplyDeleteI believe that most people are mostly good, and what determines that is one's perspective about another person's actions and the way they do things. As an example someone that is stealing something is usually going to be looked at as bad, but say that person is stealing to provide for their family and they have no one else to help them then your perspective will probably change to see them as not as bad. That's why one person can’t really be right or wrong when they say somethings good or bad, since there's no real answer and it lies in the person viewing the situation’s perspectives and the things they’ve experienced in life. A lot of times people do good things and good things happen to them, but this isn’t always the case. Because people are sometimes greedy, and because corruption and other world problems that exist, the people that sometimes do the wrong thing end up getting a good outcome. This is just the way it is in any society and I don’t believe that just because someone does something good means that good things will always happen to them.
ReplyDeleteAlthough we’d love to say that people are mostly good, this sort of perfect world isn’t exactly the reality that we face. People, all throughout history, have been motivated by greed, money, and dominance, the 3 key ingredients to an absolute piece of shit. Wars, shootings, genocides, bombings, domestic abuse, rape, kidnappings, and terrorism are all despicable acts against humanity that have almost become commonplace; and who is there to blame behind every atrocity? Humans. This list doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of people’s sinister capabilities, but it is those who are willing to stand up in the face of human error who refute my initial statement. “Humans aren’t born bad!” they say. Yes, that may be true, but our deeply rooted culture of racism, sexism, and xenophobia continue to sprout the seeds of hate throughout the coming of each new generation. Sadly, the person who does the right thing isn’t always rewarded to the fullest of their expectations. Often times, good deeds lead people to take advantage of one another, shamelessly expecting the same deeds to be returned to them day by day. Nice people never seem to get a break, even though we spend so much time pointing out the negative aspects in one another. As long as humans continue to work together, there will always be a mutual “Now, you owe me” mindset. There is a fine line between right and wrong, as it is all based on perspective. The saying, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”, roughly applies to this context, as one seemingly good action can be perceived by another as a wrongdoing. As a society, we have successfully maintained the “follow the group” ideology, as we are seemingly unable to allow individuality and opinionation to prosper. This sort of equal, Utopian society that we are slowly morphing into, strips people of their basic rights to speak freely. Those with “unpopular” views are often reprimanded for their voicing their opinions, something that challenges the very principles on which this country was founded. I find this to be one of the most frustrating things, as hypersensitivity has tightened its grip upon society, forcing people to fit into a predestined mindset and say what they want to say, as long as it doesn’t offend anybody.
ReplyDeleteI think that people are mostly good but there is a percentage of bad in everyone that may or may not show. Everyone has something bad in them in some way. But from person to person, it’s different and some people express this more than others. That is just based on their personality. But for the most part, most people are generally good. Unfortunately, the person who does the right thing doesn’t always win. The world isn’t like that. But for those who win, it’s usually happiness that is the prize. There’s no clear answer for what is right and what is wrong, though. You have to make the decision yourself for what you should do because not everything is simple and has a correct answer. A family could try to illegally cross the border to get a better life, but it’s wrong because it’s against the law. There are many different perspectives that could determine right and wrong.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the world is mostly good but most of us could hardly see this because most of the bad things is what is being broadcasted. With everything that is happening in the world today most people see the terrible things that is happening around them. Not so much the good things. There are more good people in the world than bad. Unfortunately, when people do great things for the society, only a small amount actually talk about it. So the good doesn’t always win. It’s not like a big controversy like when something terrible happens. A great example for this are the immigrants that live in the United States illegally. Although it is against the law to do this, those people are still doing something good for their family. They are trying their best to survive for their family that are in need.
ReplyDeleteI personally believe that most people which I have met are mostly good until proven otherwise, and I assume that with my heart. Because when I first meet a person, it feels awful to automatically assume that they are a bad person, until their social reputation reflects that greatly. What makes a person good or bad is the major things which they have done throughout their life. If those things are overall good, then I would consider that person good, even if they had done a couple bad things through their life. Same goes the other way, if a person did many terrible things throughout their life, but did something good like donating to charity or something of that matter, I still would believe that they are a bad person. However, the things that people do, whether it is good or bad, does not have to be right. First off, there are two major types of correctness, legally correct, and morally correct, both justifiable. If a person does something illegal, but is the most morally correct thing in the world, what is it considered? Bad, because it’s against the law, and we have been taught that whatever is illegal is bad. Or good, because the morality behind it is correct, and our humanity would consider it the right thing to do. Is that person a winner in our eyes? The law’s? In my eyes, morality is everything, but that doesn’t mean that morality is the key to victory. A great example is if a person kills a murderer. The act that the person is committing is killing, which is most certainly seen as bad for many people, however you are killing someone who has killed someone else. So are you bad for doing it? No, because you killed someone, which could have saved lives down the line. Or is it yes because you committed the exact same atrocity as the murderer did? It’s intriguing to think about, highly recommended.
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