Morality as Anti-Nature Essay Example for Free

Morality as Anti-Nature Essay Friedrich Nietzsche stands as one of the philosophers who tackled about the complexities of human existence and its condition. It is noteworthy to state that most of his works made several standpoints to what he refers to as the Ubermensch. The conception of such is designed to inspire the individual to substantiate his existence and rouse his self-overcoming and affirmative character. This can be said to arise from the idea of creating a self through the process of undergoing a destructive condition that enables the self to acquire greater power in relation to others. The development of such a self is dependent upon the recognition of the anti-naturalistic character of morality which he discusses in The Twilight of the Idols in the section entitled â€Å"Morality as Anti-Nature†. Within the aforementioned text, Nietzsche argues that morality hinders the individual from experiencing life as it limits an individual’s freewill thereby in the process leading to the creation of an individual who is incapable of life itself. He states, morality is a â€Å"revolt against life† (2006, p. 467). It is a revolt against life as it is based on the negation of an individual’s basic instinct to act freely in accordance to his passions. According to Nietzsche, this is evident in the case of Christian morality which places emphasis on the control of the passions. Within Christian morality, an individual who is incapable of controlling his passions is considered to be immoral as he is incapable of practicing restraint upon himself. Examples of this are evident if one considers that within Christian morality, to be saintly requires restraining one’s desires and hence one can only follow the path of Christ if one denies all of his desires, the denial of which involves the denial of all worldly things. He states, within the context of this morality â€Å"disciplining†¦has put the emphasis throughout the ages on eradication†¦but attacking the passions at the root means attacking life at the root: the practice of the church is inimical to life (Nietzsche, 2006, p. 66). The practice of the church, its imposition of morality contradicts the essence of life which is the actualization of an individual’s self since it delimits an individual to one particular kind of existence. For example, Christian morality has the Ten Commandments. If an individual follows these commandments, the individual’s spiritual life is ensured in the afterworld. Nietzsche argues that by following these commandments, the individual is at once delimited to one particular form of existence. This does not necessarily mean that Nietzsche applauds acts of murder; he is merely stating that by following moral rules and moral norms the individual is at once preventing himself from the experiencing a particular form of life and hence the actuality of life itself. It is important to note that by presenting a criticism of Christian moral values and moral values in general, Nietzsche does not necessarily prescribe an individual to follow his moral code. In fact one might state that Nietzsche does not possess a moral code. He states, Whenever we speak of values, we speak under the inspiration†¦of life: life forces us to establish values; life itself evaluates through us when we posit values†¦It follows from this that even that anti-nature of a morality which conceives God as the antithesis and condemnation of life is merely a value judgment on the part of life. (Nietzsche, 2006, p. 467) Within this context, Nietzsche recognizes that the anti-nature of morality is a value in itself. It differs however from a moral code since it does not delimit an individual by prescribing actions which he ought and ought not to follow. The importance of the anti-nature of morality lies in its emphasis on the affirmation of the individual. Within the text, Nietzsche claims, â€Å"morality in so far as it condemns†¦is a specific error†¦We seek our honour in being affirmative† (2006, p. 468). It is within this context that one may understand why for Nietzsche; the Ubermensch is an individual whose choices are dependent upon the ends justifying the means since to state that one performs a particular action since the means justifies the end is equivalent to performing a particular action since the act itself adheres to what a particular moral rule considers to be ‘good’. This is evident if one considers that in order for an individual S to consider Q a ‘good’ act wherein Q is good due to P and Q necessarily follows from P, it is necessary for P to be good within the context of a moral norm M. For example, a person may consider giving alms to the poor good since the act of giving alms itself is considered ‘good’ within the context of a particular moral norm. As opposed to the example mentioned above, the Ubermensch acts in accordance to what may be achieved by an act [the end of the act itself] since what the Ubermensch places emphasis on is the joy that may be achieved in the act itself. Alex MacIntyre states, â€Å"joy in the actual and active of every kind constitutes the fundamental end from which Nietzsche develops his critique of morality† (1999, p. 6). Although Nietzsche’s criticism of morality and its constraints upon an individual are valid, it is still impossible to conceive of a world wherein no morality is applied. Within the context of social reality, moral norms function to ensure order within society. Although laws may function by themselves to ensure the order of society, laws themselves are dependent upon a particular moral norm which the society adheres to. References McIntyre, A. (1997). The Sovereignty of Joy: Nietzsche’s Vision of Grand Politics. Toronto: U of Toronto P. Nietzsche, F. (2006). Morality as Anti-Nature. The Nietzsche Reader. Eds. K. Ansell-Pearson D. Large. London: Wiley-Blackwell.

Virtual Child Pornography Should be Legal :: Argumentative Persuasive Argument Essays

Virtual Child Pornography Should be Legal This nation has several issues over which most people's minds freeze up, with the disastrous drug war probably leading the list. I don't share a feeling of squeamishness and horror when it comes to drugs: What I don't want, I don't take, it's that simple. And I don't spend time fretting that my neighbors might be toking, or snorting, in the privacy of their homes. Child pornography is something else; it pushes all kinds of emotional hot-buttons in me. Certainly I would agree with the majority that anyone who exploits children in a sexual manner is committing a serious offense, deserving of harsh punishment. And anyone who get his kicks looking at images of children in sexual situations, well, that's also pretty horrifying to my sensibilities. I am very glad that my own lust meter pegs when I look at fully grown women, not at some other subset of the population. Nevertheless, I feel moved to speak against the wave of hysteria that is exemplified by U.S. Rep. Henry Brown's call for a Constitutional amendment to ban virtual child pornography. (Virtual child pornography is images that appear to be of children having sex, but which are in fact made-up, simulated by the miracles of modern computer graphics). Some who oppose such an amendment do so on the basis that the Constitution is not meant to cover specific legislative issues. That is true, but it misses the larger point, which comes down to basic rights, even for people we think have horrifying tastes. To put it bluntly, children (and adults too, of course) have the right not to be sexually exploited, BUT, adults have the right to possess any material which does not directly exploit children. Yes, including virtual pornography. I think a strong case could be made that it should not be illegal for someone to possess images of ACTUAL child pornography: The crime has been committed by the person exploiting the children, not the person viewing the picture. Nevertheless, in this column I'm taking the less assertive position that only pretend pictures of children don't warrant legal sanction. Think about this: Take a napkin. Draw a big guy with an erect c***. Draw a much smaller figure giving him a b*** j**. You have just committed a felony. Take that napkin and stuff it in someone else's pocket.

Poetry and Mother Essay

Outline It is an afternoon and the mom is washing clothes in a tub. The child has written a poem for her mother and gives it to her as she is washing. The mother scans the poem but rejects it as not being ‘all there is to life’. She feels that there is much more to life than reading or writing poetry. Despite her protest, the mother glances at the poem while she continues to wash clothes. Stanza 1 The mother obviously has given her life to hard work and struggle and seems to have lost interest in life. She does not seem to appreciate the effort of her child to offer some relief or change in her burdensome routine. That her mother washes in the afternoon indicates that her workload is enormous (as washing is usually done in the morning so the clothes can be hung out to dry.) The images of stress and strain are effectively captured in the description of the women ‘hunched’ over the washtub and her ‘shrivelled hands’. The word ‘hunched’ suggests her strenuous routine which has physically harmed her posture. The comparison of her hands to the shrivelled burnt skin of granadilla evokes the destructive efforts of hard labour on her physical body. Stanza 2 The words of the child’s poem are compared to a piece of slippery soap. Just as soap is used to cleanse dirt off clothes in this case, so too do the words of the poem give the mother strength and the power to bear her burden to restore her to some state of wholesomeness, just like soap restores clothes to their original clean condition. Note that the mother ‘grabbed’ the words and ‘used’ them, suggesting that she needed them desperately to sustain her to cope with the oppressive burden of life. Stanza 3 It is the burden of life which weighs down oppressively, that prevents the mother from appreciating or being sensitive to other aspects of life (like reading and enjoying poetry) But the fact that she does read the poem indicates that she is aware of its significance and healing power. (A poem appeals to our aesthetic sense.) It makes us see life in detail and appreciate the multi-faceted experiences of life. The word ‘scanning’ suggests that she does read the poem. The reference to the mother’s ‘blue-ringed gaze’ suggests that she has a deeper, appreciative side to her nature. Note that the colour ‘blue’ is usually associated with sky and beauty. The reference to the ‘dirty water’ is a metaphor for the pollution and corruption of life which have sullied or dirtied capacity to be sensitive to the beauty of nature of life. Stanza 4 The poem ends on a positive note. The mother continues to hold onto the words of the poem, the word ‘clenched’ recalls the term ‘grabbed’ of stanza 2, it means to hold tightly onto something. That the words are clenched ‘smaller and smaller’ indicates the great effort exerted by the mother to make the world of poetry a part of her life, she realises the value of poetry to guide her through the difficulties of life. Central message of the poem The poem whilst acknowledging the burden and harshness of life, confirms the value of developing our aesthetic nature, our capacity to appreciate what life has to offer as the only hope to cope with the hostility and problems we encounter on a daily basis. Further Consideration The writer uses simple words to reinforce the innocent, pure exchange between mother and child. The simplicity of the words also evokes the humility of their life – the setting is most likely a rural one.  The poem also has a simple structure; the lines are uniform and short reinforcing the simple effort of the child to console her mother.

Language Development Of Language And The Processing Speed

Early language development predicts the amount of vocabulary knowledge as the child develops and is a key factor that is linked with later academic achievement (Pungello et al., 2009; Weisleder Fernald, 2013). Also, background factors must be analyzed and assessed, in order to understand how language growth differs from one child to the next. Exposure to speech is very important and helps influence early development of language and the processing speed (Fernald, Marchman, Wielder, 2013 as cited by Weisleder Fernald, 2009). A study done by Kwon et al., (2013), found that play has a significant effect on the language complexity for children’s language use pertaining to the structure of play or activity setting (free play), however the gender of the parent did not influence the language growth for the child. Furthermore, children are able to identify familiar words when speech is directed towards the child and not over heard, facilitated vocabulary learning at the age of 24 mo nths (Weislder Fernald, 2013). For example, over hearing adult conversation is not as beneficial towards the child’s vocabulary learning. However, research rarely focuses on the parent’s emotional intelligence and how it has an effect on a child’s language growth. Emotions are defined as, â€Å"internal events that coordinate many psychological responses, cognitions, and conscious awareness† (Mayer et al., 1999 p.268). Yet, emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive, assimilate, understand, andShow MoreRelatedSocial Communication And Rehabilitation Of Adolescents With Traumatic Brain Injury1216 Words   |  5 Pageslater-developing communication skills such as figurative language, complex pragmatic functions , and receptive and expressive complex syntax, quick and effective rehabilitation is crucial . 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