Good vs. Evil

     St. Augustine states that there are two cities; the earthly city, and the heavenly city. In the earthly city, man lives for himself and in the heavenly city man lives for God. I believe that no man or woman is comprised of just evil, or just good. Instead, I think that everyone has both traits of good and evil within. What a person does with their life, ultimately dictates whether they are perceived by others as being good or evil or perceived by themselves as good or evil.

     The perception of what is considered good, or evil will vary from person to person, and because of this, I do not truly feel that St. Augustine’s perception of the Earthly City being evil and the Heavenly City being good is completely accurate. I think that good and evil coincide in both realms because “good” people are known to do bad things from time to time, while “bad” people are known to do good from time to time. How you view the idea of good and bad, dictates how a person is going to behave.

     St. Augustine is arguing that living for God automatically classifies you as a candidate for being part of the Heavenly City, and that living for self automatically makes you a candidate for evil.  Living for yourself should not necessarily make you an evil person, just as living for God does not automatically make you a good person.  

     Living for God to me means that you are a servant for others, while living for self-means that you are self-serving. People who live for themselves do not bear the burden of having to constantly please others, so they do not give in to the mob mentally of others. Living for God can be an excuse to do things that most people would consider wrong. When people say, “Only God can judge me”, they are basically saying that God has given them total authority and rights to do as they please.

     There is no true measure to indicate whether a person is good, or evil, but instead a person’s actions are the deciding factor for whether or not that person is good. The judgment lies in their own personal opinions, along with the opinions of others.

What is Good?

     For many, good may have multiple meanings. When the word good arises in conversation, comparisons to monetary objects generally come about. Plato has a view that gold, silver, and bronze should be the "Standard" for which people's lives are to follow, along with not much room for improvising, or changes. Good takes on many forms, but in particular when it comes to a person's life from birth to death, good can be anything ranging from having loving parents, to just being able to have the basic necessities such as a home, or food.  

    In comparison to Plato's time, the mass media would have one think that good is something such as; having one risk their health in order to fit the beauty ideal, or having an extremely large amount of money to indicate power. In my view good cannot be simply put into general terms, but instead I think that good comes in many forms, and that good has to be determined by the individual, and the individual alone. 

    While society can play a major factor in the defining of good, I believe within self is where the true meaning of good resides. Depending on where you stand on the issue of what is considered good or not, ask yourself the question, then why are some people good, while others are not? Gold, silver, and bronze, to me are not standards to measure goodness or value of self, but instead these are monetary things that could potentially corrupt ones view of good.