Do you believe all humans have the best intentions for others? Many people believe that we come into this world with only good inside of us, while others believe we all arrive good but our mindset is turned evil and self-obsessed throughout time as we grow older. In the 17th century there were many arguments on whether citizens should govern themselves or have a ruler to keep the citizens in control. Everyone has a clean slate at the start but the choices one makes can mold you into who you become later on. In the 17th century there were two philosophers, John Locke and Thomas Hobbes, who both thought differently about human nature and the way some people are when it comes to money and power.
John Locke and Thomas Hobbes were early English philosophers who each had very different views on the roles of the government and the people being governed. Their interpretations of human nature each had a lasting and vast impact on modern political science. Locke believed that men had the right to revolt against oppressive government. “‘Being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions.”
During the 16th and 17th century, Europe went through political disputes regarding government which created uproar and conflict. English philosopher Thomas Hobbes published his document Leviathan during the War of Religion in 1651. The War of Religion was a time period in which Europe was trying to establish its religion between Catholic and Protestant (Huguenot). The Holy Roman Empire in particular had tension about religious beliefs due to the Peace of Augsburg which entailed each ruler to establish a religion for their state, also known as a confession. The Peace of Augsburg also entailed that when a new ruler came into power, they could keep or change the confession of that state and its practices.
Applying “good vs. evil” as a measurement to form an opinion on others could be seen as the equivalent of using the similar vs. different dichotomy to deduce the value of another person or culture. In Montaigne “On Cannibals” he claims “Each man calls barbarism whatever is not his own practice” elucidating to some subconscious suitability we all have of deeming whatever is different or out of the norm to be bad (7). For instance instead of trying to understand The Donner-Reed party and the Tupinambas cannibalism we can quickly retort by how they “breached their primary loyalties.” which in theory is a lot easier than trying to emphasize for these individuals (Didion
Do the concepts of good and evil exist? Many people would say yes. In late 17th-century Salem, Massachusetts, these concepts were truly put to the test. In the Puritan culture that was descended from the arrival of the Pilgrims in 1620, the people of New England were expected to live a life that was strictly devoted to Biblical dictates and ideals. Unfortunately, the Puritan mindset of the time period evolved in such a way that a belief in the possibility of the devil's interference in people's lives, in evil spirits, witches and warlocks, became a part of everyday life.
For years there have been numerous articles published and experiments recorded to understand more about human nature. To answer the question, are humans naturally born good or evil? And what variables factor into humans being good or evil? This has been a popular question as the notable “The Stanford Prison Experiment” has concluded that humans are naturally evil despite controversy on demand personality; however, there have been studies done like “Are We Naturally Good or Bad” that concluded that humans prefer good intentions over malicious intentions. But before you can respond to the questions you need to first define what good or evil signifies to you.
When comparing the two different accounts of English philosophers Thomas Hobbes and John Locke we must take into consideration a number of things such as the age in which they lived and the time in which they produced their philosophical writings. We will however find out that these two philosophers actually have a couple of things in which agree on even though most of their opinions clash. On one side we have Thomas Hobbes who lived in the time of the English Civil War (1642-1651) who provides a negative framework for his philosophical opinions in his masterpiece Leviathan and who advocates for philosophical absolutism . On the other side we have John Locke, living during the glorious revolution (1688-1689) he presents a positive attitude in his book The Second Treatise of Government and advocates for philosophical and biblical constitutionalism. It is important that we know that the state of nature describes a pre- political society prior to the social contract.
COMPARISON BETWEEN TO THOMAS HOPPES AND JOHN LOCKE VIEWS ON STATE OF NATURE Introduction Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) and John Locke (1632-1704) were both political philosophers. They are mainly known for their master pieces on political philosophy. I.e. Hobbes' Leviathan and Locke's Two Treatise of Government. Each of them has different views and perspective of the State of Nature and Social Contract.
This is because we cannot officially define what the words “good” or “evil” really mean. The answer depends on the opinion of the person being asked. Many people believe that we can be born bad. However, there exists a significantly stronger argument that people are indeed born good. There is factual evidence that supports this claim.
For example, Carlos Arredondo, during the Boston bombings, the bombs went off and instead of Arredondo running to safety like everyone else. He stopped and started helping victims. One victim in particular, Jeff Bauman, he had just had his legs blown off, and Arredondo helped him to an ambulance, and stayed by his side the whole entire time. Another reason for my belief is the way I have grown
Through out history evil has been best depicted as the absence of goodness and goodness as the absence of evil. With goodness being comprehended as the direct opposite of evil. It is under speculation that maybe there can 't exist only one general meaning of good vs. evil. I trust this, in light of the fact that any one individual 's perception of good or evil is without a doubt directed by one 's social comprehension of certain qualities and ethics within their culture, i.e. the power of social conformity (Muncaster-Social Psychology Lecture, 2016). Yes, there can be cases of evil that is seen as malevolent all over the world but due to the ethnocentric component of the perception of cultural morals and values, one is unable to categorize another individual as evil or good based upon their own cultural understanding of this notion.
Everyone 's definition of good and evil is different. This definition can change depending on their upbringing, religion and events in their own life. This can be seen in a classroom. Everyone 's definition of good and evil will be different as they were all brought up differently. Without a clear definition of good and evil, we can not consider people as
This shows why Hobbes believed in the monarchial form of government. Good is considered as morally righteous and evil is moral wrongdoing. I think that humans are inherently evil because they have to make an effort
The understanding that some people are good or bad widespread all over the world.” The evil comes from human history and continue until today” and even today this statement has existed. Moreover, when people want to explain why people do some evil acts, the discussion often end with words like “people initially are born evil”. However, some other people argued that people are born good. Because of these many critics has debates such as: are people born bad, good or just like naked board without any morality.
It is impossible to know the exact origin of good and evil, but I suspect it was bestowed upon us by God as a way to test all of us with the concept of free will. The concept of free will gives each of us the right to choose between good and evil. People everywhere need to understand that there will always be bad people out there and people who want to hurt others. Knowing this, we all need to try to always be good and make the world better to create a balance between good and evil. The struggle between good and evil can be shown in many ways.
