Response – Mencius Throughout Mencius‚ there is continual debate amongst the people regarding human nature; is it‚ by nature‚ good or bad? Every option is discussed by Mencius himself‚ ranging from whether all are born good‚ born evil‚ born with both or born with neither. Overall‚ Mencius succeeds in his description of all possibilities of whether human nature is good or bad. The main permutation discussed by Mencius is that all humans are born good. In Book 2‚ Part A‚ Section 6‚ Mencius describes
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Mencius and Xunzi on Human Nature Mencius and Xunzi both follow Confucian philosophy yet have a dramatically different understanding of human nature. Additionally‚ the two philosophers make their arguments in strikingly different literary methods. Mencius believes that the “goodness of human nature is like the downward course of water” (147) in that people are naturally inclined to be good‚ and he makes this argument through conversations among friends and public figures. In contrast‚ Xunzi staunchly
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Mencius and Human Nature The way we think‚ act or feel seems to just happen naturally for us. Although we do not all think‚ act‚ and fell the same at the exact same time everyone has shared thoughts‚ feelings or actions at some point in time. These ways of thinking‚ acting‚ and feeling that are common to most people we define as human nature. Some believe these fundamental traits cannot be changed for better or for worse. Our author‚ Mencius‚ claims that human nature is a good thing. In our text
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Written On The nature of man is a subject that dates back centuries‚ though it is one that is still highly debated today. Philosophers‚ sociologists‚ and even sociobiologists have brought evidence leading to various conclusions to the table‚ so the question still stands. Mencius said that man’s nature is good‚ while Hsun Tzu argued from the opposite side. Centuries later‚ John Locke published a theory relating the nature of man to a blank piece of paper‚ stating that man is neutral until he
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Caitlin Arnold Human Nature Mencius is an ancient philosopher of China around the fourth century B.C. He was believed to have similar view to the philosopher Confucius‚ and he had a strong view on human nature. Mencius believed that human nature was intrinsically benevolent. Mencius believed that people had four virtues that drove their thoughts and actions. Mencius is quoted to say‚ “Therefore‚ it can be suggested that without a mind of commiseration is not human‚ that a person without
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Kerri Devine Essay on Human Nature There are two conflicting views on human nature. Chinese scholar Hsun Tzu believed that man’s nature is evil and when man acts “good” it is only the result of what he called “conscious activity.” In the text‚ he describes conscious activity as “the part [of man] that can be acquired by learning and brought to completion by effort.” In other words‚ Hsun Tzu believed that man is naturally selfish‚ and that unless there are rules and principles put in place to guide
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MAN AND NATURE Human beings are the creations of nature. They drew everything needed for their very survival from nature. The air they breathe‚ the water they drink‚ the food they eat and thousands of articles they use daily-all come from nature. Yet‚ strangely enough‚ man keeps a hostile attitude towards nature. Conquest of nature is the expression which is often used to denote man’s activities like space exploration‚ taming the rivers‚ etc. which sums up man’s attitude towards nature. Our
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– 18th 2/26/12 The Nature of Man What is the strongest motivation for humans? Is it man’s greedy sense of self-preservation and survival that motivates him? Hobbes would think so. Is it the idea that man is more important than other living creatures on this earth? Is it the acquisition of supreme power that proves his ideas to be right? Does might make right? I think the real question here is what the true nature of man is‚ what is man’s strongest motivation? Is man naturally motivated
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Analysis on Mencius’ perception of the human nature Introduction The term Philosophy‚ according to the definition provided by Wikipedia‚ is “the study of general and fundamental problems‚ such as those connected with existence‚ knowledge‚ values‚ reason‚ mind‚ and language. From the establishment of human civilizations‚ people started asking themselves about the underlying truths of the world. Among those questions they delved into‚ the question about the human nature – whether humans are good or evil
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The Puritans were a very opinionated people. They believed that every person was born evil and could never be good. They believed that good was something that only a chosen few could achieve. I disagree. I believe that all people have some amount of good inside them. I think people are generally good‚ but can become evil due to their surroundings. I don’t think any person wants to be evil. I think it just happens. My first argument against the Puritans’ beliefs has to do with the first responders
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