Is Mankind Inherently Evil
According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, the word ‘good is defined as “Of a favorable character or tendency,” and the word evil is defined as, “morally reprehensible.” Philosophers and Psychologist have debated on the topic of humans being good or evil for centuries and our society is still unsure of what to believe. Humans do not like to think of themselves as pure evil, but they also do not consider themselves all good either. Although some may claim humans are inherently good , the truth is humankind is inherently evil because of selfishness, and revenge.
Many suggest humans are good because of how innocent and pure children are from birth. When one sees a baby one may notice how a baby is usually happy and smiley and causes no harm …show more content…
Being selfish is when one does not consider others and is only concerned with their own personal please. In Lord of the Flies a 1954 novel by William Golding a group of boys find themselves on a deserted island and try to govern themselves but ends in shocking results. The story shows the selfish side of humanity through the character Jack, a young boy who lets the need of power corrupt him. Jack says, “We shall take fire from the others. Listen. Tomorrow we'll hunt and get meat. Tonight I'll go along with two hunters- who'll come?” (Golding 161). In this quote Jack is talking about invading another tribe to get their fire. Emphasizing selfishness because he only cares about his own needs and doesn't seem to mind the needs of the boys he's taking the fire from. Additionally, a reason why humans are selfish is because of original sin. Original sin is a Christian doctrine that believes humans are inherently evil since Adam and Eve rebelled when they ate from the tree of good and evil. In the Bible, it states this fall, “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was for with her, and he ate it” (Gen, 3.6). The bible shows humans even from the beginning of time have been selfish. Adam and Eve had plenty of food to pick from but they choose the tree they were not supposed to eat from. Their actions show that man only thinks of themselves and their own wants, instead of following God's will. Both Jack, Adam and Eve were all selfish because they took their own needs before anyone else's. Jack put his want for fire first without thinking about the other boys that would also need the fire to survive, while Adam and Eve put their want to gain wisdom without realising that they were sinning by
Many suggest humans are good because of how innocent and pure children are from birth. When one sees a baby one may notice how a baby is usually happy and smiley and causes no harm …show more content…
Being selfish is when one does not consider others and is only concerned with their own personal please. In Lord of the Flies a 1954 novel by William Golding a group of boys find themselves on a deserted island and try to govern themselves but ends in shocking results. The story shows the selfish side of humanity through the character Jack, a young boy who lets the need of power corrupt him. Jack says, “We shall take fire from the others. Listen. Tomorrow we'll hunt and get meat. Tonight I'll go along with two hunters- who'll come?” (Golding 161). In this quote Jack is talking about invading another tribe to get their fire. Emphasizing selfishness because he only cares about his own needs and doesn't seem to mind the needs of the boys he's taking the fire from. Additionally, a reason why humans are selfish is because of original sin. Original sin is a Christian doctrine that believes humans are inherently evil since Adam and Eve rebelled when they ate from the tree of good and evil. In the Bible, it states this fall, “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was for with her, and he ate it” (Gen, 3.6). The bible shows humans even from the beginning of time have been selfish. Adam and Eve had plenty of food to pick from but they choose the tree they were not supposed to eat from. Their actions show that man only thinks of themselves and their own wants, instead of following God's will. Both Jack, Adam and Eve were all selfish because they took their own needs before anyone else's. Jack put his want for fire first without thinking about the other boys that would also need the fire to survive, while Adam and Eve put their want to gain wisdom without realising that they were sinning by