What is evil.. does it even exist?

Question

Have you heard about that story about the professor and the student, when they argue about if evil existed? If you haven't google it, if you have, read on...

The story about Evil not existing, was about how evil was just an absence of good. In this story good was compared to light and warmth, it was mention in the story a few times, how you are able to measure light and warmth, except how can you measure good? Good is not like warmth or light, where it is an object that we can see alike and measure it. The definition of good differs from person to person, if we do not know what good is, how do we know what bad or evil is?

Answer 1

In my opinion evil and good are abstract notions, they may even be only human notions: Does a wild animal realize that it has done something bad (in human's perception) by killing a baby from another or even its own specie?
And same goes with pets, which recognize that something that they have done is wrong only when its masters teach them not to do this thing.

In conclusion I guess that evil is the notion born from the conscience that we wouldn't like that a thing happens to us or one of our relatives.
So, second conclusion, good and evil exist only within us and the measurement can vary from a person to another.

Answer 2

Complex questions often have simple answers, but it is up to the reader to accept it. First off, you cannot measure an intangible such as good or evil, that is a given. Now, accept the notion that these concepts are solely in the domain of humanity. Lastly, set aside the idea of doing business and making money as that is the basis of civilization.
So now we are left with the human mind and spirit, the real generator of good and evil. There are 2 pieces to this, what you think and what you do. In the first case if you wake up each morning and appreciate a blue sky, sunshine and abhorred by rape, murder and all the ills of society you read in the papers then you are a good person. However if you dream about doing those deeds then you are not. In the second case, you are now interacting with society and the good/evil concept is best summed up by doing unto others as you would wish them to do unto you. This is the nub of it and the quote is from the greatest person who ever lived and he is never wrong.

Answer 3

In terms of classical conceptions of good and evil, good is correlated with being, with existence, whilst evil is correlated with non-being or non existence. The catagories are objective, not subjective-- the distinctions are not about whether we feel that something or good or evil, but their ontological status. In this sense, and in their ontological associations, we can "know" what both are. You can know what is good because you can apprehend what exists. You can know the presence of evil by its effects.

Modernity revels in subjectivity, a proclivity that has a lot to do with its emphasis on freedom from external constraint. But on this question, such an emphasis stumbles. Usually, I have found that folks will be content with ambiguity in regards to good and evil, until the effects of an evil become immediately apparent to their experience. Then, the dense, objective character of the phenemona cannot be denied, and an apeal is made to the character of good and evil that exceeds the limits imposed by their subjectivty. In other words, we prefer conceptions of good and evil be subjective while it serves our purposes, but when this is no longer the case, an admission is then made to their objective reality.

For a careful consideration of all this, consider Susan Nieman's "Evil in Modern Thought."

Answer 4

The definition of evil varies from a person to another. You and I for example may see evil as different things. What I mean to say is what we perceive as evil may just be a norm to someone else. Its all in the mind. The matter of whether it exists or not is up to the person's view as well. As for me, I believe evil do exist and man have been given that 'instinct' to feel it.

Answer 5

How can you live in this world, and wonder if evil exists????? :(
People doing evil things to other people just to hurt and/or distress them is EVIL! Being nice to everybody is GOOD!

I live in a high crime area, and I see evil (AND EXPERIENCE IT) all the time. Finding people that only do good is rare. I can't think of a single one around here.

Watch what I do, and notice that nobody else is doing it. I get my right/wrong instructions from the Bible, and if everybody followed it, we would have very little evil ideed!

~Cindy! :|

Answer 6

Didn’t read the story couldn’t find it. You tease… your evil to treat us so he he he he

But we do have an opinion or two about good and evil.

There is no such thing really unless you break it down into my good and your good his good and her good so to speak. A good act is something that increases your good, or another’s good, an evil act is something that harms your good or another’s good. Then things get more complicated because there is not just you and me and more yous, there are us and them and more us and thems. Till we get to the collect greater good, which can still be evil as the majority often abuse the minorities.

Answer 7

The definition of any concept besides basic math varies from person to person so everything is subjective. So what I'll say hear is subjective. Evil is the absence of love.

Answer 8

It is my opinion that evil is a human invention. In John Marsden's "The Tomorrow Series" he says something along the lines of; humans think that killings others is an evil deed, and yet animals kill other animals without a thought. They don't see it as evil, just something that they must do to survive. It's like the devil. Give something a name, and you give it power

Answer 9

When evil is here it is the part of good that isn't for the better of everyone. Evil for one person could be good for another.

Answer 10

First deterring what is evil.

Humans are evil.
Do they exist yes.
Can we do anything about evil no
Will we ever get rid of evil.
Yes when we have destroyed ourselves.