Saturday, January 25, 2020

analysis Thomas Hobbes?s claim ?a state of nature is, or would be, a st

Thomas Hobbes argues that a state of nature will eventually become a state of war of everyone against everyone. According the Hobbes, the main reason behind this change will be the harsh competition over scarce resources caused by the nature of man. Through out this essay Hobbes’s reasons will be explained in greater detail.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In order to truly understand the logic behind Hobbes’s claim, we must first understand his point of view of human nature. The key element in Hobbes’s view on human nature was the importance of desires. Unlike many other philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle, Hobbes had a different approach to desires. He believed desires were real motive behind human behaviors. (Leviathan, p119) What motivated human actions were not virtues such as wisdom as Aristotle and Plato would claim, nor was it a sense of duty as Cicero would say. It was rather simple desire. Hobbes did not see desire as a harmful feeling, which must be avoided. He rather thought of it as a positive part of human nature, which could drive a person to achieve more and more.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hobbes had a definition of happiness closely connected to desires. Hobbes defined happiness as a â€Å"continual successe in obtaining those things which a man from time to time desireth† He used the phrase â€Å"felicity† for this definition of happiness. (Leviathan, p.129) Important point here is, there is no limit to this attaining of goods and happiness is a continued process of desire fulfillment, which lasts from birth to death.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It would not be wrong if we claim all reasonable people would like to live a life of happiness or in other words, a life of felicity. Having accepted Hobbes’s definition of felicity, it can be further said that all people would want a life where all their desires are fulfilled.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hobbes argued that despite minor differences, all people were close to being the same in both ability and intelligence. (Leviathan, p.183) Hobbes further stated, because people are close to being the same they also have similar desires. This is the point where the problems begin. All people have similar desires for certain goods as well as the same hope of attaining them but unfortunately most of these desired goods are limited in numbers. Because there aren’t enough resources for everyone to fu... ...ostly take care of their children with certain degree of love. Thinking that humans would become enemies to theirs seems illogical. In today’s world parents take care of their children not because laws force them but because they love them. This is an instinctive love necessary for the survival of human race and it is doubtful this love of children will be overcome by desire in a state of nature. The bottom line is that according to Hobbes, desires are the real motive behind human behavior. In order to live a life of happiness humans must constantly fulfill their desires. But, because human understanding of â€Å"good†, â€Å"bad† is interest based and the aim of â€Å"rationality† is no more than self preservation, a state of nature with no authority to fear from turns in to a state of war where every one is against everyone. With the reasons he has provided, Hobbes has put forward a good but not perfect argument. Even though there are some flaws, he has done a good job explaining how competition for desires leads up to a state of war. However, this â€Å"war† to take place between everyone against everyone including families doesn’t seem to be a realistic argument.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Friday, January 17, 2020

Health & Wellness Essay

Heath and wellness are key components in my life. To me, health is having no health issues such as, illness, sickness or injury. Wellness is a synonym of health, however I would define it as living a happy, healthy lifestyle with little or no health issues. I feel the importance of health should be included in everyones daily lives. The importance of health to me is to live a long, prosperous life. Also, to avoid medical conditions that go along with an unhealthy lifestyle. Throughout my paper I will express my philosophical opinion on health and wellness. My view on philosophical health and wellness starts with being educated on healthy foods and eating habits. Poor eating habits have become more common in our society over the last couple of decades. Obesity is becoming a significant problem in America, especially in young children. Another important philosophical belief that I have is physical activity. Physical activity is something one should incorporate into his/her daily schedule. Something as simple as walking can improve ones health. For example, instead of a young child or teenager laying around on his/her cellphone or playing video games, he/she could be outside playing a pick up game of basketball, football, etc. I feel if one incorporates any physical activity into his/her daily life, our society would be much healthier. I try to incorporate as much physical activity into my life as possible. Being a student athlete here at Waynesburg University will make that a lot easier for me. As I am part of a team or family as I call them now, we all encourage each other to stay physically active and maintain a healthy lifestyle. I am also trying not to fall into the stereotypical category of â€Å"The Freshman Fifteen.† Every freshman fears those words, but that is where healthy eating habits come in to play. In order to maintain a healthy lifestyle, one of my goals is to maintain a healthy weight. To do this, I must reduce the amount of processed foods, junk foods, and carbonated beverages in my diet. Being a student athlete I am required to maintain a level of physical activity before, during, and after my season. Therefore, my goal during offseason is to at least exercise sixty minutes per day. Another goal I set for myself is time management. With my busy schedule I will need to get an appropriate amount of sleep each night. My eating habits, time management, diet, and physical fitness will need to change to meet the goals that I have set for myself. A seemingly non health issue would be a winning or losing sports team. A winning sports team can be such a boost to a city and the people who live there, to include the economy, morale, and optimism to name a few. How about we start with an example, the Pittsburgh Pirates. A team who has not been on a winning streak in twenty years, this has boosted the economy in Pittsburgh. More people go to the games to watch this winning team and they spend more time and money in the city. It has been proven in cities with winning sports teams that depression, anxiety, suicide and crime has all been decreased when their sports teams are on a winning streak, rather than on a losing streak. In twenty five years, I will be the ripe age of forty four years old. I should be many years into my chosen career of a registered nurse and hopefully further educated to be a nurse anesthetist. I hopefully have had been blessed to be married and have children of my own by now. At this point I hope to have past on the importance of a healthy lifestyle to the ones I love. Three to four decades from now, I wish to be a active part of society, physically active and hopefully have maintained good health and wellness. My health philosophy is to maintain my physical activity, proper nutrition as well as my emotional and physical health. Combining all of the these together I should be able to have a healthy lifestyle and prosperous life. Physical activity is important therapy for your emotional and well being, it makes you feel good and that you have accomplished a goal that you set for yourself. Maintaining proper nutrition is required to keep up with your physical activity, the â€Å"better you eat, the better you feel.† Eating healthy, natural, and organic foods while staying away from processed foods, carbonated beverages, and fried foods. These bring your emotional and physical health down. My philosophy in life is to feel good, eat good, and educate the importance of health and well being. The health initiative 2020 will hopefully educate more people of the importance of living a healthy lifestyle. I feel that this initiative will cost more at the forefront to educate people across the country but after people are educated, strive to live healthier lives that medical costs will decrease and the health initiative will be achieved. In conclusion, throughout my paper I have expressed my philosophical opinion on health and wellness, and what this means to me. I hope to achieve the goals I have set for myself this year as well as into my future.