The Fight Between Good and Evil, Essay Example

The fight between good and evil is eternal in human history. But what constitutes “evil”? For example, foes of abortion consider that procedure as both murder and evil. Vegetarians may accuse you of murdering a cow when you eat that Big Mac for lunch. Although many people would agree on the meaning of good, many may differ on the meaning of evil. Evil can be defined as any negative thought or action that is meant to hurt someone either emotionally or physically without moral justification. The key focus is that the intention of the perpetrator is to do harm and that there is no moral justification, such as self-defense, that accompanies such intentions. Accidents and unintentional damage to others thus would not constitute evil, nor would defense of yourself, your family, and your home.

Evil intentions not only harm other people, but also those who harbor such intentions. An evil person who is obsessed with negative feelings may lose their peace of mind and become so anxious they may develop “Mental suffering, such as anxiety, disappointment, and remorse, and the limitation of intelligence” (Catholic). On the social level, evil thoughts and the wish to harm other people  “can only cause mischief in human affairs” (counter punch). People with such evil intentions cannot sustain normal relationships with those around them, sometimes not even with family and very close friends.

In addition to destroying himself, an evil person can cause emotional and physical hardships to others . Evil people may cause others emotional harm through actions such as bullying. When someone bullies another person for reasons of appearance, intelligence, sexual orientation, or any other reason, the bullied person is hurt emotionally and socially. Some may even commit suicide as a result. On a larger scale, evil may result in wars. World War I “slaughtered an entire generation of Europe’s young men” (Time). This war was an example of large scale harm that destroyed the lives of millions of people because of evil thoughts and deeds.