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Good vs Evil: a matter of aims or a matter of means?
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<blockquote data-quote="Warden" data-source="post: 1907581" data-attributes="member: 11006"><p>I agree 100% that motivation is the key to Goodness, although the original example doesn't really seem to apply for this discussion, it seems. Self-defence isn't really anywhere on the moral scale, it's simply an act of preservation that any creature with acknowledgement of itself would perform, but if it's regarding the purpose behind the excursion into the Underdark, then that's a horse of a different colour.</p><p></p><p>To say that the means defines morality needs to consider one thing: from whose viewpoint should we consider? If a band of heroes makes an action with good intentions, but the mass populace doesn't agree with their selection, does that mean that the group committed evil? In the case of sacrificing one life to save a thousand, the vote will be split as to whether or not this is truly a good act: I'm sure that the 999 remaining survivors won't mind their choice too much but when stacked against the millions of other votes, does this mean that theirs don't count? So, if that's the case, there will always be a body of individuals that will disagree with the outcome of the party's action and profess them to be evil, and when the sword is drawn, a good hero cannot weigh these factors too much -- he needs to make a choice in the here and now.</p><p></p><p>That's why it's more REALISTIC (despite the fact that we're talking about fictional characters in a world that exists solely in our heads) for intent to drive morality. If we defined every single action according to the whim and desires of others, my God, we'd never be able to function properly. Hell, a hero wouldn't even be able to dress themselves if that were the case.</p><p></p><p>However, there is always a threat of contamination: if these actions become involved and chosen for selfish or singular purposes, then the threat of these decisions being evil becomes a greater possibility. That's really what Evil is: a singular desire to take power from others. So, back to the saving-a-thousand-example, choosing which one person to kill simply because of personal dislike would actually corrupt the action as evil -- it had a selfish purpose behind it.</p><p></p><p>Hope that this argument makes sense.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Warden, post: 1907581, member: 11006"] I agree 100% that motivation is the key to Goodness, although the original example doesn't really seem to apply for this discussion, it seems. Self-defence isn't really anywhere on the moral scale, it's simply an act of preservation that any creature with acknowledgement of itself would perform, but if it's regarding the purpose behind the excursion into the Underdark, then that's a horse of a different colour. To say that the means defines morality needs to consider one thing: from whose viewpoint should we consider? If a band of heroes makes an action with good intentions, but the mass populace doesn't agree with their selection, does that mean that the group committed evil? In the case of sacrificing one life to save a thousand, the vote will be split as to whether or not this is truly a good act: I'm sure that the 999 remaining survivors won't mind their choice too much but when stacked against the millions of other votes, does this mean that theirs don't count? So, if that's the case, there will always be a body of individuals that will disagree with the outcome of the party's action and profess them to be evil, and when the sword is drawn, a good hero cannot weigh these factors too much -- he needs to make a choice in the here and now. That's why it's more REALISTIC (despite the fact that we're talking about fictional characters in a world that exists solely in our heads) for intent to drive morality. If we defined every single action according to the whim and desires of others, my God, we'd never be able to function properly. Hell, a hero wouldn't even be able to dress themselves if that were the case. However, there is always a threat of contamination: if these actions become involved and chosen for selfish or singular purposes, then the threat of these decisions being evil becomes a greater possibility. That's really what Evil is: a singular desire to take power from others. So, back to the saving-a-thousand-example, choosing which one person to kill simply because of personal dislike would actually corrupt the action as evil -- it had a selfish purpose behind it. Hope that this argument makes sense. [/QUOTE]
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