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]]> ~Noguy http://Noguy.deviantart.com/journal/16954216/ http://Noguy.deviantart.com/journal/16954216/ Mon, 18 Feb 2008 22:25:39 PST
Before it was shamelessly copied by Sigmund Fraud, the Great Philosopher Plato had the notion of a tripartite soul:

The Appetitive soul: This is the one which all of the crazy people cannot seem to get over. Better known as the Id, this part of one's self is focused on... base functions. Those who embrace this are intemperate. I was never a part of those people... A society based on this is a nation of filthy pigs.

The Spirited soul: Known as the ego, this part of oneself is concerned with appearing to be good without necessarily being good. It is the love of honor, or at least, honorable appearance which drives the people who elevate this part of their soul to its primacy. When I was an atheist, I was concerned about APPEARING good without actually making any effort to actually BE good; so much so, that I LIED to people to make myself appear more intelligent than I actually was. That's right; love of honor made me lie to people. I sinned. I admit it. Fully. A state based on love of honor is likely to be a military one. Since such a state is based on the APPEARANCE and PRESUMPTION of honor and not necessarily honor itself, it will be full of pretensions and lies. Where have we seen this before? This is known as the Ego.

The Rational soul: The highest part of a human being and the most important for a civilized life, the rational soul is our conscience, logic, reason, and guide to what is the RIGHT thing, not simply the easy thing. I know it sounds stupid, but I actually admire the arts I selected under my favorites for their aesthetics, not any lewdness; if I wanted that (lewdness), I'd go to a far, far worse website. Anyway, a state based on love of wisdom is a happy land, full of reason and morality, and free from "King wrath" and "Queen hysteria." The rational soul is the only way to happiness; it will not be found in any person, place or thing in the world around oneself. This is also known as the Superego.



And YES, if I were any more religious, I would be preaching to you outright. As it is, I have NOT mentioned the Bible once, just morality. And yes, I am effectively pro-life. At least I'm not for giving big business control over the government, environment and the healthcare system... damn plutocrats...

]]> ~Noguy http://Noguy.deviantart.com/journal/16954040/ http://Noguy.deviantart.com/journal/16954040/ Mon, 18 Feb 2008 22:02:24 PST
The source of goodness: Wisdom; a word with no easy definition. The way I define it is that wisdom is the ability to perceive reality for what it is, and to be able to draw true, justified conclusions using one's intellect. The ability to perceive reality isn't based on the sense alone; it is primarily based on the abilities of the mind, and the soul within. From wisdom, one can see the one, true face of reality which exists independently of human experience. To be wise is to give up the notion that human beings are the only creatures of importance, or to think that knowledge is relative. To be wise is to see the reality of all humanity, that all people have, or should have, natural rights. Wisdom naturally includes kindness, mercy, and charity towards all , respect for the natural order of the universe, the dignity of all things in the universe, temperance, fortitude, and universal, unrequited love for all concepts and ideas that are good and just. In addition to being the first means of goodness, wisdom is the highest end in all of reality.


The means of goodness: Love; When one speaks of love, one usually means romantic love, but in this case, Platonic love is the subject. In interpersonal relationships, the word Platonic means a sort of friendly affection, but in the context of virtue, Platonic love is literal philosophy (love of wisdom) itself. To have love of wisdom is to love it for its own sake, not for any extrinsic gain. Without love, one cannot even take the first step towards wisdom, nor truly be called a philosopher (lover of wisdom.) Love is what can and will save humanity from its problems, if we let it. True love gives without taking or expecting anything in return. This is called unconditional love, and is a form of Platonic love that is so high and lofty, that human beings have a hard time even comprehending it.

Faith: In the modern setting, faith is said to have religious connotations. But faith is found in all realms of learning; if people didn't have faith in science, nobody would trust it. But faith is more than believing in something because it's totally trustworthy. Sometimes, what a person believes in can disappoint him. However, if a person truly has faith, than they will be able to see that they believe in through to the very end, and at the end, it will come through and be what is believed in. Faith differs from trust in that trust is totally based on empirical reasons ("I can/can't trust you because of...") Unlike trust, faith endures even when the reasons to believe seem lost. If one is to be a scientist, philosopher, or believe in a religion, one has to have faith in their subject, otherwise, they won't know anything about their subject, as knowledge is justified true belief.

Hope: Hope is the belief that something will happen or that something will or will not be true. Hope is often confused with faith in that faith is based less on logic and more on indirect evidence, while hope is based on reason and rationality. If one has a true, justified reason to hope, only then is hope really justified. It is said that with belief comes hope, and that without hope, belief is empty. Hope without a reason is often referred to as false hope, but it is more accurately called wishful thinking. The cynicism of our modern world often brands faith as an delusion, and hope as a bad joke. But without hope, no one would be able to continue living their lives.

The ends of goodness: Moderation: Being moderate is to be temperate and balanced in all things. This prevents unjust action, as unjust actions are a result of immoderate ideas. To some, moderation would look like less of a virtue, and simply the lack of sin, but moderation is a virtue in itself, as it speaks of the soul within a person, and shows that such a person is willing to apply oneself and maintain a narrow course which leads to goodness ("the straight and narrow.") This shows faith in goodness and hope that justice will come through after all. Moderation is needed to help one's appetitive soul (id), and prevent one from being selfish.

Courage: Courage is hope in action. One acts courageous because of the hope that they will succeed, even if the odds may be against them. A person who fights to the death with no hope of success is considered to be stubborn (or devoted, in a good cause) or fanatic (in a b... ]]> ~Noguy