We Can Not Control The Passage Of Time

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

Humanity: What is human nature? What is human purpose? What is the root cause of human problems?

Since the beginning of time, our mere existence has created a number of questions we cannot seem to forget nor answer. Where did we come from? How was the universe created? What is our purpose? Are we innately good or bad? Assumptions, theories, evidence, faith, and science have all been used to try to answer these questions accurately. Specifically the question whether we are born good or bad will be addressed.

Human beings revolve around time and base their lives off of it. Although a person has the capability to use time as little or a lot to plan out their life, time’s presence can have a different impact for everyone. In sonnet “73” when talking about someone coming to the end of their life Shakespeare says, “In me thou see’st the glowing of such fire that on the ashes of his youth doth die”

The idea of striving for goodness has always been something that has been instilled in our minds since birth. We were always taught to the do the right thing. But why? What are the benefits of being a good person versus being bad? This is question that Colin Mcginn tackles in his article, “Why Not Be a Bad Person?” In it, he explains why he think virtue is the more intriguing moral standard, and explores why some people may disagree with him.

As the self begins, it is apart of one singular community with our own goals. While we have our own goals, that does not mean these goals do not resonate with the goals of the rest of the population. Csikszentmihalyi gives us a perspective on these similar goals, “Being human we all want, first of all, to survive, to be comfortable, to be accepted, loved, and respected.” (219). These goals are antecedent to our other wants, but at the same time humans tend to achieve and then evolve.

Abraham Lincoln once said “human action can be modified to some extent, but human nature cannot be changed”. Human nature has not changed since the beginning of time. Ever since the first caveman walked on this earth, humans have been extremely selfish and self-preserving, sometimes driving them to commit acts of great evil. However, this does not mean that the human race is doomed. Instead, it could actually allow for our survival, as demonstrated in William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies, Loudon Wainwright’s article “The Dying Girl that No One Helped”, and 60 Minutes’ “The Bad Samaritan”. In all three, people’s evil acts of self-preservation and refusal to help others has allowed them to stay safe. Humans may be evil, but they are

Just Humans To start off the argument that Socrates tries to convince to Glaucon that when living out life, it is the opportunity for a human being that wants to right in the world is just someone that is just doing because it is the path of justice that they follow out of their own hearts. The just things in the world that people try to accomplish and carry out they do it so that they feel good about themselves. The actions that people do in order to do just in the world stems from the fact that it is the right thing to do. As a human being, it is an obligation in order to do well in the world and from doing good deeds in the world there is some positives and negatives that come from doing the good deed.

Today, there are over 7 billion people in the world and with that number steadily increasing there is constant interaction, growth, battles and self-defining taking place. Nearly every person lives in hopes to define themselves and how they act; what they do not realize is there is something in the way of that goal. This something is what comes naturally in human nature called the human condition. The human condition is defined as, “a phrase…used with respect [to describe] situations that humans face in 'getting along with each other and the world…” (The Human Condition). Simply put, the human condition makes the how and the why of the way we act the with one another and the environment. Many aspects of the individual person can define the

It could argued that our common-sense notion of endurance through time is incorrect. That this mistaken self-conception lead us to experience the passage of time. If so, this would be illusory no? And if this enduring ‘me’ is an illusion then so is the passage of time.

Our natural state within the universe when compared to the scale of history is extremely insignificant, and arises the fluid thought that our complete conscious existence relies on evolutionary accidents. It becomes clear with time that our knowledge of ourselves as a population of species compared to any other mammals is quite significant but yet completely detrimental to the health of our universe. We must be able as humans to grasp these concepts and particularly build a world better suited for future figures to give philosophical thoughts and aspects as the human race continues to develop. There is a shortcoming with our behavior, as Rachels describes, that if an action would help satisfy our own self-interest, than we see the most reason to perform such tasks. This leaves us prone to being selfish and to sometimes hold interests out of other people’s version of acceptable behavior. Rachels signifies that all people do not have to follow any one true combination of morals, ethics, or

Human nature, the essence of what makes a human person what they are, is something that everybody has. Every person is innately a person, but how they put their personhood into action is the biggest indicator of their character, or the projection of a person’s human nature. At their core there is human nature, but their actions are what direct this source of humanity. The quality of someone’s actions is shaped by their environment and sometimes their biological makeup as well. Human nature does not have good or evil characteristics. It is how a person thinks and acts that is the true factor in the shaping of their character.

As Emerson perceived the world, “Man postpones or remembers; he does not live in the present, but with reverted eye laments the past, or, heedless of the riches that surround him, stands on tiptoes to foresee the future. He cannot be happy and strong until he too lives with nature in the present, above time” (“Self-Reliance” 833-834). Even if a man finds himself with both self-trust and originality, he may never realize his true potential if he is preoccupied with past events or future fortunes. Emerson finds these obsessions to be utterly useless: “Discontent is the want of self-reliance; it is the infirmity of will. Regret calamities, if you can thereby help the sufferer; if not, attend to your own work, and already the evil begins to be repaired” (838). In contemporary society, a willingness to “live in the moment” is highly regarded, especially among youth, yet this acceptance seems to wane with age. Nevertheless, excessive anxiousness and nostalgia are a waste of the potential that can be realized when the truths of the present are

I am reminded of a parable as to what happens when one desires to beat time. A childless couple approached the Perfect Master for his grace to be blessed with progeny. The Master who had the power to know the past, present and the future, advised them that they were not lucky in this respect in this birth. They pleaded for His grace and the Perfect Master warned them of the consequences of taking liberty with the laws of nature. Yet, the couple was persistent. “So be it”, said the Perfect Master and after nine months a baby-girl was born to the couple, but strangely, her right was folded and the child had a natural cell phone (made of flesh and blood) in her grip. She was not able to stretch her hands. “This child is part of the generation that we are going to get after ninety years, and I have pulled a soul that was due to take birth then, for your present benefit”, said the Perfect Master. “I have picked up one soul from that lot, and you are thus specially graced”. Similarly, Anne Bronte was able to visualize in The Tenant of Wildfell Hall the characteristics of the twenty-first generation.

I have come to the conclusion that the past, which is merciless and perilous, is a foreign country, and it cannot be altered. The past lives differently from the present, just as the future will live differently from the very moment you begin to breathe air. Yet somewhere in the back of my mind is this obsession. Whether this obsession has been drawn from the idea that my future will stay the same as this exact moment is speculation, which I shall ignore ‘till the day I die.