Man is born good, it is only society that makes him bad. Do you agree?

Answer 1

Man is born innocent.....until he makes a choice.

Answer 2

This is something that Rousseau certainly argued, believing that "natural man" was pure and that society/civilization corrupted him.

But I think that, given that humans tend to be social creatures, that part of our nature (although others would argue "part of our culture") is to have particular desires, and sometimes those desires cause us to do not-so-good things.

Hobbes claimed that humans basically have two desires that they seek to have fulfilled - the quest for power and the avoidance of death.

With this in mind, I think that humans are capable of doing whatever it takes to a) gain power (economic, political, military, religious, cultural, etc.) and b) ensure that they, individually and collectively, survive.

I'm not so sure that this is necessarily the result of living in a complex society, but living amongst others of the same species. Perhaps the more complex a society is will cause these concerns to increase (and the fear of facing consequences to potentially decrease), thus leading one to believe that it is "society" that makes an indivudal bad.

But then, what is society made up of if it isn't individuals?

I guess that I don't agree with the notion that humans are born "good" and society somehow turns them. I think that humans are born with the potential to be good or bad, and that they succumb to whatever forces that are upon them as they determine which actions to take.

Answer 3

I can agree with that. A person is born untainted, as they have not lived to corrupt their souls. As time passes on- men become corrupt due to the exposure of other men. Nothing is as innocent as a baby- because they haven't been exposed to the people of lower status than them.

What I mean by that is you know those "mentally disturbed" children in grade school? I don't know if it was just me or not, but I met a lot of them. Kids with bad parents, and bad lives. The kids that end up being criminals. When someone is exposed to them...some people don't have the will to not be like them. As such, a tomb-tainted soul, so to speak.

If you isolate a man from birth to death, he will be innocent.

If you send a man into society, he comes out a serial killer.

Answer 4

Great thought Rousseau, but slightly impractical, and not something that follows any observation of human nature. In the first place man is a social creature, and the great things about mankind only subsist in his environment which is society. You are not talking about man when you try to separate him from being a social being.

So if man by nature is social and yet evil exists in the world, then something else is a factor. Why not look to his reason, and his appetites. He capability for thinking something is good, and being driven by his senses and his passions not to choose it. He might be alone, but more likely he is in a social setting. It doesn't seem to matter, the consequences just appear more grave when he is in society.

Answer 5

Of course it seems logical to say "yes...man uses his surroundings as a guide to both good and bad behavior" but at the same time there are many circumstances where children will be raised in horrible atmospheres and rise above. Two children born in the same household treated the same way (good or bad) can turn out completely different. That is certainly proof internal factors can be stronger than external.

Answer 6

YES ABSOLUTELY.
society is what makes man bad.

what we have to consider first off when examining whether or not this assertion is true, is the fact that society is inherently competitive. all people within society are competing with one another for their livelihood.

with that being said and understood every motivation of every act, bad or good, becomes illuminated.

Thoreau said it best: "and thus man will talk about the fall, all the while lying on their backs."

read "the sane society" by Erich Fromm, and it will all make sense.

Answer 7

No I don't. Granted, society can play role. But, it's about the up bring and what was his home life was like. Anything can make or break a person. Also, it depends who he chose as friends. You can only be protective for so long before a person has to take into account of his/her own actions. Like the old saying goes, "Don't do the crime, if you are not willing to do the time."

Answer 8

I agree. If it weren't for society and their classes of people, man wouldn't have to worry about being as good or better as the next guy. Peer pressure is always tough.. in adults as well as kids.

Answer 9

Not quite. We are born innocent and react ot life's experiences according to our ability to reason under stresses that we encounter. That's why in a way a very wise man is a very old and lucky fool!

Answer 10

No.

Man is born free, and society works as a mirror to tell him whether he uses his freedom for good or ill.

Answer 11

yes it is...You and society...Imply existence of two...Presence of "another" in your life makes you more or less, big or small, good or bad inevitably, unless two becomes one . Then there is no one to reflect you, and no one to judge. You cannot become one with the society, for society is nothing but judging machine, you can only be in...or out...