Are good and evil simply man made perceptions of the world?

Question

Hhumans need to categorize all things, as a way of understanding. This is our basic instinct to separate into good and evil.
I say they are non-existent, as they are adjectives. We personify them into others' actions and thoughts, thus making them appear as nouns, as a way to segment who and what we want to side with and who we need to alienate.

It is a primal need and one we should learn to better understand.

Answer 1

Nice question; I am surfing/riding the brain wave. They are and they are not man made perceptions. They do not actually exist as whole, separate entities, but they do exist within the mind of man. Humans percieve things as best suits the individual. Every personality has its antagonist and protagonists. What they are depends upon the induvidual. Sometime the vast majority of a particular society agrees on their view toward something as good or evil, but there is no universal moral, and I question the existence of a universal non moral. Homicidal maniacs slaughter their own species, which is certainly against nature, as nature commands us to promote our own species. However, within the mind of said maniac and others similar to him, what wrong has been done? The world is overpopulated as it is. Is the maniac a gift from nature to control our population? Sorry, I'm getting off track. The terms good and evil are just ways to simplify complex ideas. The theme of good vs. evil within novels has a limitless range of plot line options, both simple and complex. Youre right, they are descriptions of how we view others and the ongoings in our environment and we will alienate ourselves from what is evil and gravitate toward what we percieve to be good. To each his own censor.

This judgement is necessary, considering the patterns of human behavior and ways in which we live. It is not soley man made; it derives from nature. But humans do define it for each other, such that the idea is applied to society, which will never form a solid consensus.

Answer 2

Your words sound good, and as if you are educated, but to me it's really simple. It's not a baseball game, and we don't choose sides. People have what is called morals, and a conscience to guide them. You know in your own mind if you are doing something wrong, just as you know when you do something that conforms to what society has set as laws. It should make one feel good about their self when they do good, just like the crowd cheers when you score a home run. Suppose you threw the baseball at someone and killed them dead. Would you call it instinct when the crowd jumped you and killed you? One can look into any subject to the point of obsessive behavior, yet cannot see the forest for the trees. Animals kill each other, then again we are not animals, and we were given a brain to know right from wrong. One sides with another on the basis of behavior, as in monkey see monkey do! I do agree that we need to learn to better understand each other. I don't agree that we personify them into others actions and/or thoughts. Some people are just plain crazy, and I don't care how you try to lead them, they return to obsessive thoughts of doing harm to others. I could be totally wrong, but isn't this why I was given a brain, to know the difference? Have Fun!

Answer 3

Many people seem to regard evil is a 'thing'... something that has some form of corporeal existence in the physical universe. In that sense, evil does NOT exist.

Evil 'exists' only as an abstract concept... one that is 'dualistic' in nature. 'Evil' cannot 'exist' without 'good'. They are the two sides of the same coin, in the Yin/Yang sense. One cannot 'exist' without the other; neither can be defined or described except in terms of the other.

Good/evil is further abstracted in the sense that it represents a 'judgement'... not a 'thing'. As a judgement, good/evil is wholly subjective, since it relies entirely upon the 'criteria' that is employed in making the judgement.

So, the real issue is not good/evil per se... rather it is the criteria that people use in making their judgements of good/evil.

Since we are pretty much all wired the same, and share pretty much the same cultural values in a larger sense, we usually find ourselves on common ground when we judge questions such as "Was Hitler evil?", since we can agree on the criteria. However, we should realize that if Hitler had been asked the question "Are you evil?", he most certainly would have been thoroughly offended by the very idea. According to HIS criteria, he would have seen his actions as good, for his people and for 'The Fatherland'.

When we get down to subtler questions, where someone's 'criteria' might depend upon interpretation of a particular bible verse, for example, these kinds of judgements can get a little stickier.

Remember, though... it's not really about good/evil, it's really about criteria... which ultimately comes down to one's moral compass.

Answer 4

Who would rather perceive it? A group of humans called society has formed an agreement together to do what would keep them happy, alive and sharing equally what nature has provided for them.They separated the things that will be good for every one and the things that will be bad. They name the man who does what is right as Good and the one who does what is wrong as Evil and that's when it became a noun. Are there any other possibilities how they came out?

Answer 5

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Answer 6

I think that good and evil is as real as anything else in this world. Everything in life and nature comes in pairs. There is day & night, man & woman, life & death, ying & yang. It is how it has always been. If all of those things are real why is good & evil any diffrent. I believe within every human being is the potential for both good and evil. I don't believe that someone can be inheritly good or evil. I believe it is a choice we all can make. It is a choice that at some point we all have to make. Wether we like it or not.

Answer 7

As you say they are adjectives rather than nouns.
As they are so transient and reliant on peoples perceptions then can they realy be definate 'thing'?
My personel beliefs do not hold space for things being good or evil. certainly things may be beter or more pleasing than others but since that is largely down to a persons choice they can not have fixed terms like 'good' and 'evil'.
As adjectives though i like the words. sometimes thins can be truely evil - like that nasty 2-week-old-rubbish-in-mid-summer smell.

Answer 8

Yes of course. The world has no "good" or "evil" in it. Think about it, "Good" is a term invented by humans to describe certain types of behavior. So is "evil". If a tarantula captures and injects its venom into a butterfly, is this act good? If a female pig offers its breasts to an orphaned dog pup to nurse off of, is this act evil?
There is no inherent good or evil in the world except for how we define them. Good to one person may be considered evil to another.

Answer 9

Evil does not exist
Good and bad are based upon what your highest values are as an individual. You live with others who share those similar values.
Change you values, then good and bad also change.
Value life, one set of values, value self sacrifice then you need a new set.

Answer 10

There is no good or evil. It is a human construct having no relevance outside human perception. I agree with your views. It is a byproduct of the will to live.