Good vs. Evil- Elle Ogden

We grow up watching movies and shows on TV where there is a clear struggle between good and evil, we read books about the good vs evil battle, and in fact we see it in the real world. But is it really a battle so to speak? Must we characterize people as either one or the other? See, every person is created in the same way, and yes, we all have different genetic make-ups, but we all maintain the same rights.

Absolute good and evil don't exist. If we were only allowed to characterize people as good or evil, the whole world would be evil. We've all done something we aren't proud of or that wasn't the most perfect choice we could have made. We aren't all evil because of it though. Good people can make mistakes and still be absolutely wonderful people that go on to be successful and change the world. However, if we lived in a world where a mistake can make you evil, they would never get those opportunities.

Hitler, Osama Bin Laden, James Holmes, all names of what would be considered evil people throughout our world's history. These three people are despised by almost everyone who knows anything about the acts of horrific crime they committed. There's no doubt in my mind that these three men are evil, but how do we know what justifies an "evil" label? There in lies the gray area.

I think the answer to that question lies in the intention. A person making a mistake is one thing. We all do it, and we pick ourselves up and move on, but when someone has the intention to harm another individual, or in all of those three men's cases, multiple people, it crosses the "gray line". When their intention is evil, they deserve to be labeled as an evil person. Though we have those individuals in the world that are evil, there still isn't an absolute good or evil. Everyone has a different view on the two categorizations, and I guess you can choose to either see the good in people, or see the evil.