I've always been interested in human nature, but more recently than ever. Lately, I've been reading Lord of the Flies. After reading that book, I thought the moral of the story is "people are naturally evil even if they don't seem so at first". Maybe that's what the author intended and it fits especially since the author fought in a war, but even so, I just found myself disagreeing. To me, that lesson is saying "don't trust anyone because eventually you'll stab each other in the backs" and I didn't think that is a helpful lesson. A few philosophy Crashcourse videos later, I came up with this: "human nature is to do things that makes oneself happy." One of the main reasons I didn't like my inferred Golding's moral was it didn't explain why the world isn't in complete disarray today. Yeah, there are so many things going on that makes it seem like it, but there are still a lot of good things, or things I see as good, that happen. I believe my analysis fits into both sides as well as the shades of gray. For example, during the Tienanmen Square protests, people starved themselves in hopes that making themselves unhappy in the moment would lead to happiness later. Throughout many other protests, there have been similar thinking. Some protesters know they won't survive their protesting, but the thought of what they see as better might happen in the future makes them happy, giving them reason to do it. Children procrastinate doing their homework because they want to feel happy in the moment. I believe a lot of counterproductive actions are also caused by that thinking. On the other hand, people who don't procrastinate doing their homework are often doing it so they'll feel happy later. This might mean more time to do things they enjoy, not being yelled at by a parent, getting a good grade, but all in all, it's for feeling happy. In my life, I've woken up suddenly, worried sick I had school or work and I was going to be late. Then I would realize it was the weekend and settle down. You're probably thinking, "this doesn't work with your philosophy, Darcy" and that's what I thought, too, but think about it this way. On our pursuit of happiness we often cause negative and positive consequences that affect our emotions and thinking. I strive to do well in work and school to make myself happy, but this leads to me getting worried that I'll be late, causing me to wake up on the weekends thinking I have school or work. I can go on and on, but I think you guys get the point. If you have any other examples from your own life or from anywhere, feel free to submit them down below. If you have an example you believe doesn't fit my version of human nature, put it down there, too. I'll try to prove you wrong, but you may be right. Thanks for reading and see you next month.
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AuthorI'm Darcy Ridge, creating stories that all revolve around family and identity in a myriad of ways. In the past, I have shared multiple stories and published a novella online. You can find me on Wattpad and many other social media websites. They/them [Image Description: black background with the words "Social Justice and Mental Health Resources" in white in the center /end ID]
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