• New here? Register here now for access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Plus, stay connected and follow BP on Instagram @buckeyeplanet and Facebook.

Do You Believe People are Basically Evil?

Evil, as a word is very subjective.


As to if humans are, by nature, more "evil" rather than "good" I think that is also a very subjective discussion. When it is believed, by the society one is a part of, however small or insular it might be, that the deeds enacted are "good" it is easier to take part. Is this evil? Not by nature, no. Does it make the humans involved in the situation more "evil" than normal? I don't feel qualified to make that decision. Why do you? (Rhetorical question, not directed toward anyone in particular.)


Example:Stanford prison experiments

Essays and commentary from the scientist of the Standford experiment.
 
Upvote 0
The arguement as to whether or not evil exists or if people are inherently evil can be worked over until hell freezes over assuming there is a hell or such a thing as freezing.
What is the definition of "it".
Evil does exist in our life and society for the simple reason that is it recognized by us as an individual (in most cases) and as a society. Indeed evil has to exist just because we argue over it for if it didn't we wouldn't know it was there to argue over. "If a tree falls ..."
To argue that it doesn't exist would be tantamount to arguing over nothing.
people are not inherently evil they learn how to be evil by being taught that by others. As a child we probably would consider evil the person who smacks us on our butt right after we were born. And thus we learn our first step in right and wrong , of good and evil.
 
Upvote 0
Best Buckeye;1106104; said:
The arguement as to whether or not evil exists or if people are inherently evil can be worked over until hell freezes over assuming there is a hell or such a thing as freezing.

Agreed

What is the definition of "it".
Therein lies the rub.
Evil does exist in our life and society for the simple reason that is it recognized by us as an individual (in most cases) and as a society.
That doesn't mean evil exists, that means there is a moral line that, once crossed, the majority of society has agreed upon is bad.

Indeed evil has to exist just because we argue over it for if it didn't we wouldn't know it was there to argue over. "If a tree falls ..."
BS logic. It is a fact because we say it is a fact? God exists because people believe he exists? It's circular logic. Pull the other finger.

To argue that it doesn't exist would be tantamount to arguing over nothing.
This is same logic, flawed as shown, as above. Invalid.

people are not inherently evil they learn how to be evil by being taught that by others. As a child we probably would consider evil the person who smacks us on our butt right after we were born. And thus we learn our first step in right and wrong , of good and evil.

In part, this is acceptable to me as a truth. Although, again, the word "evil" itself is still subjective. "Bad" does not equal "evil" if you allow for the idea that "evil" is a pinnacle of bad behavior, an extreme example. The adult who disciplines us by giving us a spanking as a result of unacceptable social behavior may be seem to be mean, but I'm pretty sure the ideation of "evil" is beyond that child's thinking capacity.

Bad or good behavior, based on societal mores and expectations, is generally learned, I agree. But to define it as "evil" brings us right back to a subjective definition of what evil is. Morals change based on a society's needs. Age to age, what was once considered bad or good, has changed. The Romans had no problems with pedophilia. Renaissance Italy married young, rich girl children as young as 9 to well connected men of 40-50 years older or more. They also castrated boys as young as 5 to preserve their "God given" voice. To do the same today would be horrific. To belabor the idea that "evil" is easily defined and unchanging is to live in a box.
 
Upvote 0
Best Buckeye;1106104; said:
The argument as to whether or not evil exists or if people are inherently evil can be worked over until hell freezes over assuming there is a hell or such a thing as freezing.
What is the definition of "it".
Evil does exist in our life and society for the simple reason that is it recognized by us as an individual (in most cases) and as a society. Indeed evil has to exist just because we argue over it for if it didn't we wouldn't know it was there to argue over. "If a tree falls ..."
To argue that it doesn't exist would be tantamount to arguing over nothing.
people are not inherently evil they learn how to be evil by being taught that by others. As a child we probably would consider evil the person who smacks us on our butt right after we were born. And thus we learn our first step in right and wrong , of good and evil.

I apologize for the repetition, but nobody responded to this:

Gatorubet;1104708; said:
Sat through a trial where the woman threw her two kids off of a bridge into a river in the winter. She was one of the most non-evil persons I ever saw. Mentally ill? She was, unquestionably. But she only wanted to send her two kids to the highest level of heaven, which as a Mormon she knew would happen if they died before a certain age. She has asked the Church to take her kids, as she could not cope with her problems. They said to have more faith and try harder instead. So an evil act can be done with no evil intent. Mens rea, or "guilty mind" was present, as she knew that it was a crime, but she thought she was doing a "greater good" thing because she loved them dearly, and she thought she was evil and would contaminate them if they stayed with her. She tried to give them away, but was told "no".

Makes you wonder about the nature of evil. Of course, to the kids, they are just as dead.

While it is almost universally acknowledged that a mother killing her children is wrong in Western society, this woman was far from evil, and her actions sprang from her love. So if evil cannot be defined by the act of the person, no matter how egregious the act, it is a very amorphous and subjective thing. It seems to me that you have an intent to do something bad to achieve something bad to be an act of evil. Trying to turn native Americans into mainstream citizens by outlawing the native language and customs seems almost to approach "evil" today, but Jim Thorpe and his classmates at Carlisle were being subjected to a program that the teachers thought helpful to them. Keeping kids in sweatshops for 15 hours now seems evil, but then it was felt that it allowed families to survive by maximizing income. Perceptions changed.
 
Upvote 0
I believe we each have our own defining limits of what constitues "evil." Having said that, I believe, in general, most people simply live life, day in and day out, to get by... to survive. We are all animals, take away our 2.3 kids, our white picket fences, our country clubs memberships, our 5 course meals and we are all just animals... we survive by fullfilling basic animalistic needs. I would say majority of people are able to live a life that isn't as barbaric as say the animal kingdom however, some simply can't. That doesn't make them "evil" in my eyes. To me it means they must have things pretty rough... they react to situations on a level different than some, they are merely trying to get by, to survive...

For instance, I don't believe in stealing... I don't steal, however... if I had a small child that was starving because I couldn't hold a job, I would be more inclinced to steal food to feed my child. Does that make me evil or does that make me desperate?

Say my child does something wrong and I believe a punishment is in order and I believe spanking them will get through to them and get my message across, am I "evil" because I spanked my child? I don't think so. Again, I'm doing what I think best.

I could go on and on with examples but alas, I think I have already stated my point... in my opinion,people act and do what needs to be done given current and specific circumstances. Those could be long life circumstances or something on a more acute level.
 
Upvote 0
BuckeyeRyn;1106114; said:
I believe we each have our own defining limits of what constitues "evil." Having said that, I believe, in general, most people simply live life, day in and day out, to get by... to survive. We are all animals, take away our 2.3 kids, our white picket fences, .
I love it wheny ou talk dirty Ryn . :biggrin:

There is a difference between bad and or wrong and evil. While it would be bad to steal food for children that is a far cry from evil. IMO evil must have an evil intent also.
 
Upvote 0
Good and Evil are opinions, if you haven't been instructed by your elders as to what "good" is then you don't have an understanding of what "evil" is. Simply put, one thought is based on the other. Light cannot exist without dark, but if you lived in a cave your whole life and never saw "light" you wouldn't understand what the difference was.

Can people have ideas which are evil and they know it? Yes, does that make all people "basically evil?" No. When a person is born they are essentially a ball of clay mentally, you can form that however you'd like, they get influences from their elders, school, and people they meet along the way, those will guide a person to be what they are, and they will react accordingly. We see a lot of foreign country policies as evil or wrong, they have the same view of us and how we live, is either really evil? It's all opinion.
 
Upvote 0
Best Buckeye;1106116; said:
I will ask you the same question Gator ; Do you believe evil exists?

Yes. But the nature of it goes to the very core of human experience. Not 19th century views on miniskirts, which would be called evil. The forced sexual exploitation of children is evil, and there is no subjective prism that can ameliorate the harm and damage that it causes. The poverty of the family is not a mitigating factor either, as opposed to the great example Ryn gave with stealing food. It exists all right.
 
Upvote 0
Back
Top