Philosophers & Human Nature

Question 1

Human Nature

Answer 1

• Traits ppl share, no matter where or how they
  live
  - Ex. Genes, abilities, what’s inside or
  outside you, + one’s potential to DO smth
  or BE smth
• IF they exist –> help set humans apart from everything else

Question 2

Individual Nature

Answer 2

• Special abilities, talents, or personality traits
• Things ppl can do
• Each person is different in how good they are at these skills

Question 3

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Answer 3

• 18th-century philosopher from Geneva
• Disagreed w/ Hobbes
• Before govs. ppl were better
  - Once basic needs were met, humans would
  want to help each other, + that society
  made ppl less good

Question 4

Thomas Hobbes

Answer 4

(1588 - 1679)
- 17th century English philosopher
- Humans are naturally self-centered + mainly look out for themselves
- In Leviathan, he described life w/out rules or gov as “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, + short”
- Humans can’t live peacefully or civilly w/out some authority to keep order
- Can connect to a person’s ability to achieve
or become smth in life

Question 5

Taoism

Answer 5

• Humans are naturally good
• Humans can live in harmony w/ nature = everything is balanced + peaceful
• Improving oneself helps return to a natural way of living
• Problems arise when strict rules + social expectations are imposed
  - Stray from natural order –> problems for
  themselves and others

Question 6

Islam

Answer 6

• Humans are naturally good
• Fitrah = natural purity + innocence everyone is born w/
• Ppl have an instinct for right and wrong BUT it can be influenced + corrupted by “worldly realities”

Question 7

Xunzi

Answer 7

(310 - 238 BCE)
- Chinese philosopher + 1/3 Confucian thinkers (w/ Confucius + Mencius)
- Humans aren’t born good or moral
- Everyone is influenced by selfish desires + emotions
- To become better –> education + learning about moral values
- Ppl can’t be trusted to act morally

Question 8

Immanuel Kant

Answer 8

(1724 - 1804) German, from Enlightenment era
- While ppl aren’t born evil, they do have natural tendencies toward selfishness, greed, + desire for power –> immoral actions
- Humans have a moral duty to act according to reason
- Introduced the idea of the “categorical
imperative” = we should only act in ways
we would want everyone else to act
- Encourages us to think how our
actions affect others
- To create a fair + moral society, we need to see ppl as whole individuals, not just as tools to achieve our own goals
- Highlights importance of reason +
individual responsibility in striving for
morality + goodness

Question 9

Friedrich Nietzsche

Answer 9

(1844 - 1900) German, influential to modern philosophy
- Didn’t directly say humanity is evil
- Criticized societal norms + traditional moral system, arguing that they often suppress our natural instincts + desires
- Ppl should embrace their instincts + passions instead of trying to fit in
- By this, individuals can become more
“powerful + authentic”
- Challenged idea of fixed moral truths: Morality is created by humans, thus is subjective
- Importance of self-realization
- Understanding oneself&raquo_space;> simply labeling
actions as good or evil
(even if that means facing darker impulses)