What is human nature? Are humans self-interested and savage or are we socially conscious and kind? The people of the French Revolution give us an answer to these questions. The French Revolution was a time of rebellion and revolution and provided an immense change to the country of France. The revolt was started by drought‚ rising prices‚ and increasing frustration with the government by the citizens of France. The rebelliousness followed the previous age of Enlightenment. Enlightenment philosophers
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thought and can be applied to science and humanities‚ along with morals and politics. Human nature is the basic substance shared by human beings‚ and is thus important in making sense of society and all its complexities along with the individual man and his liberties. Two prominent philosophers‚ Rousseau and Kant‚ express conjectures on human nature in their essays. Rousseau focuses on man in the untainted state of nature. He believes that the lack of knowledge and morality in savage man is better than
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regarding to human nature‚ morality and human freedom. Alex‚ the protagonist of the novel‚ shows the darkest side of mankind and society. Due to Alex’s obscene behaviors and crimes that he has committed‚ the state attempts to cure him with the controversial Ludovico’s Technique‚ by forcefully “injecting” him with goodness and depriving him from human freedom at the same time. The novel debates on whether morality should be imposed by force or free will‚ and whether order in society or freedom of choice
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1 HUMAN NATURE: A CONTESTED CONCEPT Are we inherently good or bad? Are we driven by reason or emotions? Are we selfish or altruistic? Is the human mind malleable or predisposed? These questions are highly contested and the answers to them far from clear. This is due not only to the array of different perspectives on human nature‚ but also to seemingly contradictory evidence. We need only scratch the surface of history to find confirmation that humankind is capable of incredible cruelty and
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Assumptions about human nature in order to create social justice. According to Mill‚ social justice is “the idea that we can put in place a set of political institutions that will ensure the just distribution of benefits and costs throughout society.” In other words‚ social justice is in the hands of the government to create certain institutions that will greatly benefit everyone‚ and equally so. In order to do that‚ one must have an idea of the way human nature works so as to institute programs
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Immanuel Kant’s philosophical views of human nature and the ethical systems that govern human actions are primarily summed up in his composition of the "Categorical Imperative.” By his own logic‚ Kant attempted to describe the mechanics of nature and the morality of mankind. As Mitchell states: Indeed‚ as Kant showed us‚ the world appears to operate according to the principle of cause and effect‚ and our shared agreement of this interpretation allows us to reason about the world. (Mitchell‚ 259)
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Machiavelli’s view of human nature. Machiavelli has long been required reading for everyone intrested in politics and power. In The Prince Niccolo M achiavelli presents a unique view on governing a state. Machiavelli believes the ruling Prince should be the only authority that should determine every aspect of the state and put in effect a policy which would serve his best interests. These interests were gaining‚ maintaining‚ and expanding his political power. (Machiavelli‚5)
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In Chisholm`s: Human Freedom and the Self‚ he discusses the objection of `immanent causation` which he describes as an agent causing an event. In other words‚ an event does nothing to cause an additional event. Instead‚ Chisholm argues that the agent can be a human being that causes these events. Specifically speaking‚ immanent causation can be something that cannot be catalysed by an event‚ such as the physiological activities of our brains. Physiologically speaking‚ the communications of neurons
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Machiavelli’s View of Human Nature In The Prince Niccolo Machiavelli presents a view of governing a state that is drastically different from that of humanists of his time. Machiavelli believes the ruling Prince should be the sole authority determining every aspect of the state and put in effect a policy which would serve his best interests. These interests were gaining‚ maintaining‚ and expanding his political power.1 His understanding of human nature was a complete contradiction of what
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Introduction I have taken for my study one chapter from the book Marx and human nature by Norman Geras. In the second chapter Norman Geras deals with the human nature and historical materialism. Although many Marxists denied Marx’s theory of human nature that there was a human nature to be found in Marx’s words‚ there is in fact a Marxist conception of human nature which remains‚ to some degree‚ constant throughout history and across social boundaries. The sixth of the Theses on Feuerbach provided
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