Question

Sometimes the best way to test one’s own beliefs is via directed self-reflection. Let’s step back and consider whether people are good or bad. Look at some of the news stories you have already collected for previous modules. Focus on those that make an assumption as to whether people are good or bad. If you choose, you may research for new articles. Please select two to complete the following exercise:

Examine the arguments or assumptions that each article makes about the “good” or “bad” of the human action. Write one paragraph (minimum of 500 words) either defending or attacking the assumption made in the article on whether people are good or bad in this instance. Try to isolate key points in your paragraph that would point in one direction or the other. Close this writing exercise by identifying your own personal beliefs and defending it in this situation.

Answer 1

Being good or bad are moral conditions which decided by the social norms, a person can be good in some conditions but it does not mean that he is always good.

According to Kohlberg, moral development occurs in society and follow social norms so that we cannot directly assume the good and bad people. Our assumptions and beliefs follow the social norms and our social development always affects our moral values.

An action can be moral in some situations, while cannot be moral in other conditions because morality evaluated by society so that we cannot confirm that what is moral or not.

When we grow, we learn from our society and personal experiences so that we develop the understanding of good and bad actions and persons because our learned and conditioned experiences tell us about the moral issues and thoughts. Social norms conditioned our thought process which affects our understanding towards good or bad actions. As a human being our thought process develops from the social issues and social reactions. A good or bad perception cannot be defined only by individual perspective so that we are not able to determine the good or bad action through individual understanding.

Post moral stage of moral development also gets affected by previous stages of morality so that the idea of good and bad things occurs through the idea of understanding the beliefs.

Recent days we can see the media trials about good or bad actions because our social norms ask us to do so while collective thinking about morality tells different than an individual approach.

Morality and idea of good or bad actions are relative and can be considered through our education, level of understanding and social conditioning so that as a person our thought process about good or bad thing get affected by various aspects. A person who have strong beliefs about good and bad actions probably related to the social values because we cannot think and understand about good and bad actions.

Our every action create effects on society and leave strong or mild sign of morality but further actions always are taken by collective approach rather than single beliefs. People are good or bad is a moral concept so it cannot be proven scientifically, our beliefs, social understanding, and relative ideas define the moral and ethical values.

In my opinion, every action can be good or bad, it depends on our perspective towards social conditioning so we cannot determine the good or bad things.   

?