Search Helium

Home > Arts & Humanities > Philosophy > Ethics

Beyond the principles of good and evil

by Andrew Witherspoon

Created on: December 25, 2006   Last Updated: May 08, 2007

What is good and what is evil? How do you describe either one? How can you describe one without the other? Well, what I usually like to do is get a few definitions first, because defining a thing is the first step to understanding it.

1. Good having positive or desirable qualities; not bad or poor.

2. Evil Something that causes harm, misfortune, or destruction.

These are pretty broad definitions I agree but in this instance broad is good because it pretty much covers or is inclusive of everything that I or we may think on the subject. My ideas of good and evil basically fall in line with these definitions but for me it describes a symptom of each and not necessarily the nature. The basic assumptions made about good and evil are basically that one is good and one is evil or bad. My question to myself is how do I know that this is true? What seems to be good versus what seems to be evil can only be construed as such when compared against the other? If they could be compared alone in an environment of their own what then would they be?

I have been toying with the idea that their may be no inherent good or evil nature, just natures that are opposite to one another. A force of order and a force of chaos, so to speak. This brings to mind the question, which is the force for order and which the force for chaos. My answer, it depends on the point of view from which you are looking. I've tried to put myself into the roles of these opposing natures, and have come up with some serious to me but really non-conclusive thoughts. None of it can be proven but it's still interesting to think about. I know that none of this is new. Religion has the idea of order and chaos, as does science. Science states that this force of order and chaos such as matter and anti matter are just opposites having no focus, they just are. Religion states that these forces do have a focus, a guiding focus and that either one or the other is beneficent or malevolent.

I propose that some of this is true and some is not. I believe that there are opposing forces and that they do have a guiding focus according to their natures. I believe also that there is no actual intention of good or evil in any of these forces, regardless of popular religion. There is more to our universe of so called order than we think; we prove it to ourselves through science and other media time and time again. I believe that our universe may not be the only one and may actually on some level coexist with other universes, one of which is our opposite. I am not talking about antimatter and matter I am talking about a guiding force for each universe that happens to be direct opposites of one another. As what we call good is corrupted by what we call evil, in this opposite universe, what we call evil is corrupted by what we call good. From each point of view the other is evil and the origin is good.

According to the definitions above this would make sense. One force would be beneficial to its own order and detrimental to its opposite. From our point of view, seeing the consequences of one force being affected by the other we would label one consequence good and one evil or bad. But isn't good or evil about choices and decisions? If either force is only interested is in its own order because it is dependent upon that order simply because it is its nature, how can something be good or evil for simply following its nature? I believe that these forces or universes overlap because they must. The laws of our universe support this. Everything has an opposite or a counterpart. If the little things in each universe have a counterpart, one that is necessary for balance then so too should this be on the larger scale.

Learn more about this author, Andrew Witherspoon.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Helium Debate

Cast your vote!

Appearance & reality: Does it need to be non-temporal to be real?

Click for your side.

87020

Featured Partner

The Overbrook Foundation

The Overbrook Foundation has partnered with Helium, giving you the chance to write for a cause. Browse Overbrook's featured titles, pick an issue and write! You can also learn new perspectives on issues that you care about.more


CONNECT WITH US

Read
our blog
Helum for writers

Write and get published
Share with other writers
Polish your freelancing skills

Join our active writing community
Helium Content Source for Publishers

Quality articles from proven freelancers
Exclusive rights, fast turnaround
Brand engagement, business blogging -- our writers do it all

Get custom content today!

INFORMATION


Helium, Inc.
200 Brickstone Square Andover, MA 01810 USA
#