Life

Leroy Tyree

Ethics-pg.77

Life is “the form of existence that all people, animals, plants, and all living organism have and that rocks, dirt, and metal lack.” What all living organisms have in common is that they are alive; with each day there is an opportunity to change. However, a unique feature of human lives is the ability to determine ones life beyond primitive need and will. We each have the ability to be wholly irrational and seek pleasure for pleasures sake. We seek happiness in unnatural, and this confuses us to what is of true value. Is it the “things” that we can buy or the unlimited possibilities that life may bring? I believe that life, in its immeasurable opportunities is, in itself, of intrinsic value.

However, the further our society moves away from nature the more we begin to value things outside ourselves, and the cycle of life (other people, beings, etc). Then, goods become essential to our quality of life because more value is place on them, and a person’s values can determine what they value in life. For example, if a person believes that being a NBA superstar will provide the best quality of life, he would interpret that as being an intrinsic value. Thus, he would value practicing, exercising, and maintaining his grades to achieve this quality life. However, if one does not believe that being a NBA superstar is a quality life, and believes a quality life is being a lawyer one would know how to read, speak, and write very well.

However, without life there would be no NBA, workouts, lawyers, etc. Life is not only intrinsically good, but is the basis for all that is good. Although, people may not have the experiences, money, or goods that they want, life provides the ability for them to attain them. Furthermore, all of these “things” that human value are temporary and the change from time to time. A good a person values today may be junk tomorrow. However, they will always need their health, strength, and the strength of other living organisms to survive. We are all a part of a delicate cycle of life that gives and takes. Without it we are not “nothing,” we simply are not.