Ben Schaeffer Assignment 3

Assignment 3. Ben Schaeffer




I am going to come upfront and say absolute good and evil does not exist. Often "true" evil is created for literary or cinematic purposes. Antagonists are created to make the story juicy. Characters such as Voldemort don't have a good bone in their body. Even those who commit mass murder might show remorse or have at least done something kind in their life such as help an old lady cross the street. If they feel no guilt, they aren't evil, they are sociopaths and mentally ill. There is no war between good and evil. There is simply a war of human motivation and action. For example, ISIS can't be classified as the bad guys because in their eyes we are the bad guys. If somebody robs a bank or commits a crime they aren't doing it because they are "evil," they do it because they are extrinsically motivated. Usually these sinners are good people too. Completely nice and normal people can do things that society labels as evil on any given day. Good and evil do not exist in our world. In my opinion, it is just who we are. The concept of good and evil is completely subjective. An American soldier might be feared overseas, but here he is a hero. In books, evil is those who commit bad deeds and want to reek havoc, but in the real world it is those who do things that the majority of the population would deem cruel. Similarly, with being "good," in books the good guys are working for the well being of others. However, in our world it might be as simple as being polite and conscience of others.