Whether You Believe that Are not Being Systematically Deceived by an Evil Genius at this Moment - Essay Example

Do you have any reason to believe that you are not being systematically deceived by an evil genius, right at this moment? Does it matter whether you are being deceived or not? Explain your answer. The essence of existence of various human beings is based on their perception and belief of the various factors that give them a self-drive in life. I believe in the fact that life is what someone makes and perceives of it. Things in the world do not just happen, because they were meant to happen but they are guided by our actions. I can argue out the fact using an example. Majority of the people in the world fear death yet it is something that everybody will have to face. Death and birth have the same principles since birth also has its own mysteries. No one knows about their lives before they were born (Bhattacharjee 123). Moreover, very few people remember their lives when they were young and in their toddler ages. The same principles apply with the main principles that are guiding us in the present day. People are given the liberty to act and to think according to the situation and according to what their instincts hold and tell them. The decision and the way people live is also influenced by many factors that surrounding them. It may range from various diversities such as education, religion, the environment and other factors that influence the guiding principles in a person’s life (Bhattacharjee, p 130). Through various societal and cultural influences, people tend to believe in various practices that make them make the decisions they make in life and stand by them. I therefore do not believe in being controlled by an evil genius because an evil genius tends to make people do wrongs in the society constantly. I believe that human beings have the power to design and choose their fates (Bhattacharjee 150). I believe human beings control themselves and their behavior. Can an empiricist coherently believe in God? Explain your answer. An empiricist can coherently believe in God as man’s five senses are not adequately reliable for the main reason that man is neither infallible nor perfect. Humans do not have the divine ability to possess complete flaunt less knowledge to everything around them. There are some things in life that man cannot give adequate answers to. Assured and broad knowledge requires humans to depend on a perfect being and that is God. God is Infallible and full of exhaustive knowledge (Gupta 67). The man’s five senses can only provide information and awareness with reference to only specific attributes of an object. There are many fields that empiricists have no answers to. Believing in god is the only option that can offer those answers. The question of origin and existence for example, answers can only be found in religion. The empiricists believe in only what they can see but there are other things that happen in humans’ life that cannot be seen as they can only be encountered psychologically. The eyes of humans cannot give immediate, direct awareness and understanding of an object. This is because human eye can only provide some information and attributes. On the other hand, God can see and fully understand all aspects of an object with exhaustive knowledge He has the meticulous and exact knowledge about everything in the human society. The five senses do not provide sufficient answers, explanations and understanding to man hence, they can coherently believe in God. Empiricists only believe in assumptions and theories for their lives to make ideal sense they have to turn to God (Gupta 42). What is the "will to power"? Do you agree that this is a significant motive force in persons’ lives? Why, or why not? The will to power can be taken to mean the various forms that motivate an individual to perform various functions in the society to be recognized. The “will to power” is having the desire to be in a position of power and influence. Various needs become necessary and essential for achievement according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. At the top most level of the pyramid, it is characterized by an individual’s willingness to amerce power and satisfaction. Majority of the people who desire to attain or amerce power have passed through all the other basic steps of the pyramid (Nietzsche 203). It can be viewed as a great source of motivation since an individual does not stop struggling until he attains the level that they desire. Motivation is an inward force that drives someone to achieve or attain various goals in the society. It is highly influenced by the people the individual interacts with from time to time. If the people are against someone amercing power, the level of motivation of the individual may be low. However, it may not constantly be the case throughout. Some people are strong willed and can be able to surpass all the societal beliefs to achieve their goals. Generally, having an objective in mind and working consistently to achieve it is a great source of inward motivation. With power comes authority, which is the greatest weapon that a human being can possess (Nietzsche 112). The ability to control, make decisions and be in charge of fellow human beings. Is ethical theory of any use in real life? Explain and justify your answer. The real and human form of life is governed by various ethical theories that govern their existence. For instance using a real world example and showing the applicability of ethical theory, a case of a woman is told whose father leaves her and the mother while she is seven years old. The father later on in life appears after he hears of her daughter’s success. At the particular time, the daughter is fully-grown. A question therefore arises on whether the daughter should forgive the father or not. Application of the theory Justice is not a virtue that stands on its own, it requires the existence of other virtues to exist. Justice plays an important a critical role in the unification and aligning of various other virtues. Natural justice bears the definition of acing fairly. It generally represents an appeal to justice and fairness during various judicial review proceedings. Natural justice involves arraigning of a particular individual considered guilty in a court of law and granted a fair hearing. Responses about conventional justice focus on better and suitable ways of evidence gathering and procedures concerned with better means of prosecution of various cases. It seeks to provide better support ad various services to victims of a particular case or in a legal process (Ferdiawan, 250). Conventional justice is part of a criminal justice system process. In other cases, it exists as an element used alongside with the criminal justice. There is a general norm that majority of the people believe. They believe in seeking justice for victims in courts through a formal way and seeking prosecution and various trials as a way of seeking justice to the various victims. Conventional justice is an extension of the criminal justice, which makes the process more accommodating and accountable to various survivors or victims. Conventional justice therefore helps the victims to cope up with the various operations and processes that the criminal justice displays. It particularly comes in handy when the victims of a certain ordeal do not want to present the particular case in court and would rather want to settle the issues away from the court system. In the particular case, the actress meets her father whom she had not seen since she was seven years. It means that she had grown without her father’s care and love. It also implies that her mother raised her throughout her important stages in life. She would consider a conventional way of solving the issue since she is now an adult who is fully dependent on herself. If the father had not done any harm to the mother, then she should reconsider her option and settle it using the conventional justice way (Shafer-Landau 154). Aristotle had proposed four cardinal virtues that gave rise to other subdivisions. These virtues in the process are applicable in the current context to be able to decipher and help the actress make the correct decision upon the encounter with the father. The general four cardinal virtues proposed by Aristotle are prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude. In the particular case, the virtues that would be highly applicable are prudence, justice, and fortitude. Prudence Prudence refers to the process of choosing right channels, which would finally lead to achieving worthy ends. The particular type of virtue was dependent upon various options that were available and the consequences that would result from the selection of a particular type of action. Prudence comes in whereby an individual is able to select an option that leaves both parties satisfied depending on their relation and the type of matter at hand. Its application in instances that involve domestic behaviors, self-direction or public affairs provide a platform for decision-making. The actress in the particular r scenario would be able to assess the impacts that absence of her father have caused in her life and weigh whether it Is necessary to forgive him or not. Various aspects undergo consideration in the particular scenario such as reasons as to why the father abandoned the family when she was seven years old. The other important thing would be to find out whether during the seven years he has been supporting the mother (Melden 87). Her evaluation of the struggles her mother had to go through to raise her up may form a critical part in the decision making process. Her father’s attitude and treatment to the family becomes an important variable for analysis. She should also analyze what she has had to go through in her life and what have been the advantages and disadvantages. What has been the outcome of his absence? She should access all the circumstances and situations before she adopts a conventional way of deciding whether to forgive the father or not. Justice Justice becomes a very important virtue in the case. In the particular case, it is the father versus the daughter. There are various means the actress can be able to handle the matter. She might decide to adopt legal justice, distributive justice or commutative justice. The main argument of her case would be neglect of duties of the father (Shafer-Landau 1120. However, before rushing into such measures, it will be essential for the actress to gather evidence by listening to both sides of the story as told by the father and the mother. Negligence of duties and responsibilities is a crime. Fortitude The actress should not react in a rush manner to dismiss or accept the father. At the age of seven, the girl was not mature enough to understand what had been happening. It therefore becomes essential that the girl analyses the situations without any emotional attachment before forgiving her father. The bottom line therefore is that her parents should reveal the true nature of events to her before making any broad steps. According to Kant, the decision made concerning choice of a particular moral path is always a difficult step and decision to make. However, he proposes three maxims for consideration in the event of determination of the morality of any particular situation (Melden 57). The first maxim proposed was that an individual should portray or display actions with concur with the universal law. It means that the actions taken undergo universal acceptance as being legal and rightful (Shafer-Landau 43). The second principle suggested by Kant was that an individual’s actions should treasure humanity not only as a means of achieving something desired but also as a solution or an end (Melden 63). The third perspective used is that an individual should act in a manner in which they are part of the law making process and that they become subjects to the laws formed. With reference to the first maxim, the actress should ask herself whether forgiving her father would be in accordance to what naturally and normally occurs. It should not be an extraordinary action. There should not be a logical contradiction. In the case, the choice of not forgiving her father who has been away since she was seven years seems to be the universal accepted norm without consideration of details. The second maxim does not apply in the particular case. The third may undergo consideration. For instance, what would go through her mind if she found herself the victim of a similar scenario? She would access how to react when the choice of not to be forgiven or to be forgiven would be made. From Kantians perspective, it may seem to be okay to forgive her father. The decision made may be because of the facts of the case and the reasons given because he will forever remain part of her life despite not being physically present for her. Works Cited Bhattacharjee, Asima. A study on the contributions of Kumarila Bhatta and Prabhakara on Anumana and Arthapatti in Mimamsa School of philosophy . Assam: Silchar , 2011. Gupta, Anil. Empiricism and Experience. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006. Melden, A. I. Ethical Theories. New York: Read Books, 2007. Nietzsche, Friedrich. The Will to Power. New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2011. Shafer-Landau, Russ. Ethical Theory: An Anthology. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2012. Read More