I’ve thought long and hard over what it means to be a ‘good’ person, and I think you’ve just hit the nail on the head here without even realizing.

‘Good’ and ‘bad’ are nothing but social constructs taught to us as children. There is no eternal rule book telling humans what is the correct and incorrect way of living (They tried to make some a few thousand years ago but it didn’t really work out like they had planned). Being kind is ‘good’ and hurting people is ‘bad’ — but why?

Acknowledging that the construct of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ is perceived differently by different people depending on factors like upbringing deems the rest of your post redundant. “Feel good to do good” seems pointless now that it has been established that morality is far from black and white.

In Western society today, suicide is still a relatively taboo subject. It’s widely considered a bad decision — suicide is bad. But in shogunate Japan, ritual suicide, also known as Seppuku, was a culturally important act to regain one’s honor and maintain the reputation of their family. Perspective is dangerous.

Definitely a thought-provoking piece, thank you.

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