As we are living in a vast world swirling with the swing of different conflicts and issues that it is facing, it is quite inevitable for us to experience and feel emotions that can either make or break our character. There have been a lot of debates around the nature of each emotion that a human being has the tendencies to feel. Of course, one of the most talked about emotions could be traced to the word “love”. Philosophers and sociologists have tried to accurately explain the weight of the influence of love to our society. However, it is still up there in the clouds as to the extent of this emotion if we are going to analyze its dimensions.
Confucius, arguably one of the most prominent Chinese figures, is a teacher of morality (Dimensions of Love, p.1). He emphasizes that for an individual to exhibit his regard for humanity, he should be of moral character. This leads to the notion that morality can only be achieved if one has the highest view on love. Furthermore, Confucianism believes in the value of universal love as an act of regarding the state of others as one’s own (Dimensions of Love, p.5). It is of no surprise here that the end result of love is having harmonious relationships with the people surrounding an individual, especially those who he is always mingling with. This is actually emphasized by Confucius through stating that there should be an effective relationship between men so that conflicts and misunderstandings will never prolong (Dimensions of Love , p.4). This statement is really accurate as the society cannot avoid having heated arguments or issues due to the individual differences of each person. But the thing is one cannot dwell on the dark past because it will devour him slowly but completely. To be able to do this, one should take into consideration that not every peer acts and thinks the same with him. That individual should have the capability to put down his pride, which is the root of most cruel acts, and understand and comprehend the situation by putting himself to the shoes of that peer.
Another important idea that the wise Confucius thought of is that human nature can be enhanced by external forces (The Contribution of Psychology to Education in China, 1991). In my opinion, the nature versus nurture debate could become a solid basis for this statement (Nature vs Nurture Debate, 2015). In analyzing one’s personality, we should not just take into account the biological origin of that person. It will never be enough. To effectively create a study someone’s character, environmental influences are vital cogs to the equation. People, especially children, tend to imitate or model those persons that they look up to or are in a higher rank in the societal hierarchy. This explains waves why our personality is greatly affected, positively and negatively, by other people.
Going back to the importance of the emotion of love, the statement that really struck is the belief that when all the people would love one another, then the strong will not overpower the weak (Dimensions of Love, p.6). For me, this is a legit excellent line because of its simple logic. If we are to intensively analyze the current state of our society, it is so of no wonder that corruption and poverty are two of the most unresolvable societal problems. The saying that the rich get richer explicitly provides an example of the cruelty of the society regarding this matter. We could say that the economic growth of a society is off the charts, but does it positively affect everyone including those of the lower ranks in the societal hierarchy? I really believe that the great chunk of that growth is only felt by those in the higher ranks like businessmen, medical professionals, or politicians. I think this speaks volumes of the society’s care and regard for humanity. One cannot just ignore the state of these economically-deprived people just because one thinks that it is of no importance or because one believes that he cannot do anything to change the status quo. I duly believe that if we put our true hearts and wise minds on the issue at hand, we can move even the highest mountains.
References
Nature vs. Nurture: Which One Determines Who You Are? (2015). Retrieved June 05, 2016, from http://www.medicaldaily.com/nature-vs-nurture-debate-50-year-twin-study-proves-it-takes-two-determine-human-334686
The Contributions of Psychology to Education in China. (1991, June 1). Retrieved June 09, 2016, from http://spi.sagepub.com/content/9/1/3.abstract
