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Human Nature Philosophers Have Contemplated Term Paper

On one hand this means that absolute freedom, on the other this means man is solely responsible for his existence and future. The third condition, despair, is a manifestation of will. One has the capacity and capability to decide whether or not to engage in any activity or take any action. Once there is no longer control or involvement, one should disengage (Flynn, 2010). I believe man is neither inherently good nor evil. I think the nature of man is an individual thing and is essentially the product of environment (such as home, education, and culture) and genetics. There is certainly a propensity of evidence to support Hobbes assertion that people are essentially selfish when viewed in the light of Enron, Wall Street, Bernie Madoff and the like. However, there are also many people who look at the world through a more benevolent lens than Hobbes and are more content than Sartre's portrayal of existence as nothing more than anguish, despair and forlornness.

I believe most actions are motivated by the desire to fulfill needs, or at least perceived needs. I believe that some needs, such as...

are basic while others are of a higher nature such as the need to find self-fulfillment and strive to reach our potential and to connect to something beyond ego. I think the nature of a man is a manifestation of his needs.
References

Flynn, T. (2010, spring). Jean-Paul Sartre. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2010/entries/sartre/

Lloyd, S.A., & Sreedhar, S. (2009, spring). Hobbes's moral and political philosophy. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2009/entries/hobbes-moral/

Robins, D. (2008, fall). Xunzi. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2008/entries/xunzi/

Shun, K.L. (2010, winter). Mencius. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2010/entries/mencius/

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References

Flynn, T. (2010, spring). Jean-Paul Sartre. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2010/entries/sartre/

Lloyd, S.A., & Sreedhar, S. (2009, spring). Hobbes's moral and political philosophy. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2009/entries/hobbes-moral/

Robins, D. (2008, fall). Xunzi. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2008/entries/xunzi/

Shun, K.L. (2010, winter). Mencius. The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. E.N. Zalta (ed.) Retrieved January 30, 2011, from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2010/entries/mencius/
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