Essay about Shopping for Non-violence - 2319 Words

Shopping for Non-violence Last quarter in my ethics and society class, I found myself in a personal dilemma: As we read and discussed non-violence, I found myself increasingly siding with those philosophers who say that non-violence is impractical in our society today, mostly because they had concrete evidence that non-violence doesnt work, and I didnt have any concrete evidence that it does. Indeed, non-violence looks good on paper, and seems like it would function well; there would be less blood in our world, and instead more conversations, more peace between people and nations. But I found myself asking, if non-violence is so great a philosophy, why hasnt it caught on? As a person who has always considered herself a†¦show more content†¦This argument is rooted in the belief that human nature is fundamentally good. That is, every person can only kill so many innocent people before going insane with guilt. Therefore, reacting to aggressors with violence is simply unnecessary; there is no need to sto p with violence what will eventually be stopped by pure good will alone. In addition, Gandhi points out that a non-violent people resisting an oppressor would be very difficult to rule. Their boycotts and protests would set the economic and political systems of the society askew, †¦and the tyrant (would) not find it worth his while to go on with his terrorism (Gandhi 332). Furthermore, suppose these oppressed people not only refrained from violence, but actually loved their oppressors, and let them see that they (had) not a trace of ill will against them (Gandhi 334). Gandhi argues that this love would reach up to (the oppressor) and his eyes would be opened; he would eventually stop his aggression out of love (Gandhi 334). Once again, Gandhis psychological argument claims that non-violent resistance is just as effective, if not more effective in the long run, than taking up arms, for inherently good people can only do so much evil. Walzers argument: Walzer, on the other hand, challenges us to ask ourselves how practical Gandhis psychological argument is in the reality of ourShow MoreRelatedMedia Violence vs. Real Violence Essay1094 Words   |  5 Pageslives. One can argue that media violence contribute towards social violence where the effects place a huge impact in ones being. Television violence is not only a form of media violence; there are other significant forms of media that contribute to media violence which are computer games, comic books and music. 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