Objective List Theory

Human nature is an idea that allows humans to believe that what they do tells them who they are. “Certain social, cultural, and intellectual traits and forms of behavior possessed exclusively by humans, at least in any marked degree” (Smock, 8/8). In the book it says “Each person is a unique individual, a free agent capable of making choices.” We are our own unique individual, but in philosophy we are all the same on the outside.

In fact, however, the pleasures differ quite a lot, in human beings at any rate. For some things delight some people, and cause pain to others; and while some find them painful and hateful, others find them pleasant and lovable…But in all such cases it seems that what is really so is what appears so to the excellent person. If this is right, as it seems to be, and virtue, i.e., the good person insofar as he is good, is the measure of each thing, then what appear pleasures to him will also really be pleasures…and if what he finds objectionable appears pleasant to someone, that is not at all surprising: for human beings suffer many sorts of corruption and damage. It is not pleasant, however, except to those people in these conditions.

The issue I’ve identified throughout these chapters was the high cost of materialism and how human beings value objects and money more than anything else. A solution to such a problem can be recognized through a materialist perspective in a social world.

Nozick suggests, “why should we be concerned only with how our time is filled, but not with what we are?” The truth is humans are not only concerned with what they do in life, but also with whom they become and are. The human personality develops by experiencing true and real events that are not resulted from a man made machine. We as humans have the ability to reason and understand life differently than everything else in existence. Because of this understanding of life, we understand that pleasure is not the only important thing to us. As human we have real life goals which need to be experienced through reality, not through some stimulation of our brain. Nozick makes it clear the pleasure is not intrinsically good because by denying this thought experiment, we are also denying that all we need is pleasure to live a good life.

Although they may not necessarily be positive attributes, idols and funerals, kings and slavery, are an intrinsic part of human nature - they are part of what separates us from animals. [...] [I]t is our ability to reflect upon the characteristics of nature and of humanity which separates us from non-human nature (Soper 49). (57)

“No one knows you better than you know yourself.” This fabled quote implies a sense of of self-awareness for an individual, and in a way, it passively rejects the societal norms and outside judgements towards that individual. However, the world seeks a systematic approach to determining the capability and worth of individuals. This “system,” whether imposed by the government, social norms, or society itself, will always create problems for individuals because of the individuality of each human being. This makes a “perfect model” impossible. The next question is “why?” Why do people depend on validation from such an imperfect system when it only causes problems? Is there any other type of worth that rewards more than “systematic validation”, perhaps capable of connecting to the uniqueness of the individual on a personal level? Worth is more meaningful when determined by the individual rather than by a system because true worth comes from within, as opposed to that of the fickle outside world.

Thomas Hobbes, an English philosopher (1588-1697), is well known for his great political notions and thoughts, and deservedly so. His main concern is the problem of social and political order. In “introduction”, Hobbes was depicted to believe that the entire phenomena in the universe, including human nature was to be explained in aspects of material bodies. According to him, soul and mind were not separate from the body as other writers believed. Human beings are essential machines. Their aspects and emotions operate pertaining to the physical part of the law, as well as chains of cause, impacts, action and reaction. As machines, human beings pursue their own self- interest avoiding pain at all cost and pursuing pleasure. Society is a similar machine, greater than the human body, as well as artificial (temporary) but operating as stipulated by the laws governing motions, as well as collision.

Transcendentalist author, Henry David Thoreau sees materialism as the destruction of society and one’s mind. He articulates this in Walden, “Cultivate poverty like a garden herb, like sage. Do not trouble yourself much to get new things, whether clothes or friends. Turn the old; return to them. Things do not change; we change. Sell your clothes and keep your thoughts. God will see that you do not want society.” These strong views from Thoreau are not subject only to him, fellow transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson shares similar views from Self-Reliance, “Men have looked away from themselves and at things so long that they have come to esteem the religious, learned and civil institutions as guards of property, and they deprecate assaults on these, because they feel them to be assaults on property. They measure their esteem for each other by what each has, and not by what each is.” These two influential thinkers agree that materialism is ruining civilization and free thinking.

In Book IV of the Republic, Plato states that human beings should spare themselves from the world of materialism. As per him, the ordinary goods of life – strength, wealth, beauty, rank etc. have a corrupting and distracting effect. They should instead strive to obtain education because as per him, true education civilizes and humanize them to their relations to another human being. Being dependent on another individual for anything impairs people’s virtue. Similarly, In the First Inaugural Address, Jefferson states that in spite of the fact that with richness comes power, human beings usually forget right as they possess wealth. In a general sense, as a human being, we should tend to live a life away from materialism because too much focused

It is human nature, often unconsciously driven, to choose pleasurable activities over less enjoyable or painful ones. For example, good-tasting food loaded with fat, salt and calories may win over healthier choices blander in taste, lower in salt, and lower in calories.

of which is that human beings are rational creatures that tend to think objectively and operate

In attempting to reveal insight upon the first part of this two-fold question, one must first discern the meaning of human nature. According to the authoritative opinion of The Random House College Dictionary human nature is defined as; "the psychological and social qualities that characterize mankind." In assessing the psychological and social qualities of mankind, it was easy to find oneself consumed within the vastness of characteristical qualities for which humanity has been endowed. These qualities range from ignorance to knowledge; grief to joy; from incontinence to self-restraint; lust to perseverance; injustice to

"The individual is what he is and has the significance that he has not so much in virtue of his individuality, but rather as a member of a great human society". Albert Einstein

The major criticism of this argument lays in premise three, its “factual premise” as James Rachel calls it in his book. Opponents of this argument and Rachel being one of them, imply that it is wrong to say that satisfaction is one’s only goal because satisfaction doesn’t even have to be a goal. Satisfaction is the presumable state that results from ob-taining a goal. Thus premise three is wrong. One can say that you can make satisfaction your goal if you will feel bad if you don’t do something, but this is not always the case. Satisfaction can result from something else. And it is also incorrect to say that one makes satisfaction his goal then chooses his desires to fulfill the satisfaction. (J. Rachels p. 82)

We must realize that there is more to ‘individuality’ than just materialistic items such as clothes.