What Does It Mean to Be Human - 626 Words

There are many different meanings to being human. Being human means being a mundane that tries to make sense of its spiritual existence. We are not human, we are simply being human. If we were not to be born as humans, we may have been born as animals. In Book I of Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle introduces his argument by distinguishing between two types of ends which human beings strive for. He states, â€Å"For the end is sometimes an activity, sometimes a product beyond the activity; and when there is an end beyond the action, the product is by nature better than the activity† (1). Aristotle initializes happiness as being the desirable condition which we ultimately work toward. Virtue, character, and love are three states in our lives that make us human beings. Moral virtue is acquired through the habituation of good acts which constantly aim for a mean between excess and deficiency in each circumstance. It is the choice of moral virtue through our acts, which allows us to satisfy a major requirement for happiness. Virtue, for Aristotle is a state in which reason helps us decide to do good acts. This is a part of our natural function as human beings, since reason is our distinguishing characteristic and good is the always the object of â€Å"correct reason.† The habituation of good acts, then, is what leads us to states of virtue in our lives. Since action always implies either pleasure or pain, it is our job to maintain the appropriate amount of each in the things that we do.Show MoreRelatedWhat Does It Mean to Be Human1450 Words   |  6 PagesWhat do es it mean to be Human? By Rudy Trevino   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Origin, meaning, morality and destiny. These are not just random words attached to the big questions of life raised by humanity in the context of traversing in, what to many is, a mundane existence. The questions of where we came from, what the meaning of our existence is, whether there is such a thing as wrong or right and what is to become of us when we die, are questions that might makes us wonder what it means to be human. Is a robot humanRead More Ridley Scotts Blade Runner: What Does it Mean to be Human? Essay660 Words   |  3 PagesRunner: What Does it Mean to be Human? Blade Runner written by Ridley Scott is a movie based in the future. It is Scotts depiction of what is to become of Earth. But technological advances shown in Blade Runner have come to a point where humanity can be questioned. Reality is blurred and the nature of what is human is changing. Replicants appear identical to humans and even have emotions, while the real humans appear cold and unemotional. So who is really human and what does it mean to be humaneRead MoreJust Human. What Does â€Å"Being A Human† Even Mean? The Merriam-Webster1906 Words   |  8 PagesJust Human What does â€Å"being a human† even mean? 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The machine’s goal is to trick Human B into thinking it (the machine) is the human. Turing states that if the machine is successful, then the machine does have a mind. Turing’s machine has the ability to answerRead MoreEssay on Peter Singers Views on the Killing of Animals1295 Words   |  6 Pagesthink that animals should have the same rights as humans. People feel this way because they feel that animals feel everything that we feel, such as pain, loss, and other things. Peter Singer seems to agree with these people. He thinks animals are aware of their feelings and what is h appening to them. Singer feels that there should be some equality between humans and animals. He says that every being has the ability to suffer which is what makes hurting animals wrong. Singer says, If a beingRead MoreThe Issue Of Animal Cruelty1023 Words   |  5 Pagesreason to be in existence. Everything must have an ends to itself rather than a means to another ends (Aristotle, 617-636). 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To the author, being human means all these things, and especiallyRead MoreAquinas View On Happiness1271 Words   |  6 Pagesthat human happiness does not consist in acquiring things such as money, honor, fame, power, goods of the body, or pleasure. He also claims that complete, i.e. perfect, happiness can only be achieved by contemplating God in the afterlife. I will discuss arguments for, arguments against, and my opinion for both claims. To support Aquinas’ claim that money, honor, fame, power, goods of the body, or pleasure is not required for human happiness, one may cite they share ends for the sake of human beings