Good and Evil

[dahrling]

First of all, you gain ten points from me for liking Star Wars.

As for the question, I believe that good/evil is actually a point of view.  Look at our society compared to the Viking society (just one example).  For us, it is against the law to kill in any way, for it is deemed unethical.  Back then it was considered a great honor to kill others in battle, and even viewed as honorable to die in battle.  Not only that, but many were sacrificed for their gods, and in some cases, the men sacrificed had volunteered to die...for glory.  That may not be the best example, but it isn't the only one.

Morals vary depending on the culture, that much will always be true.  At the end of the day, you can always argue that people who do evil things don't see themselves as evil.  And even then, who am I to define those acts as evil to begin with?  Quite a conundrum.

Hah, thank you (: I actually find it to be a very interesting film series. It touches on many issues we can find in abundance in our society. Same goes for Lord of the Rings, for example, even though I find it to be less morally ambiguous. 

OK, so let's say then that good and evil hail from a cultural point of view (as well as a personal one). Were religions invented as a way to keep order, then? And if so, would the Vikings in this example die in battle if they didn't believe in gods? What keeps an atheist from doing whatever he or she thinks? I would say ethics and our own conscience. As well as the law. But the law are made by men and they can change. Can ethics change?