Final Report Post 1

There’s a theory about good and evil in which it is said the evil is nothing more than a privation of good, but what does that mean? How is that applicable to day to day life? Well it’s been talked about for a long time but only by those who questioned what is good and what is evil. Namely St. Augustine was one of those who talked about the privation theory of good and evil. There are seven arguments he used to talk about it too. They are as follows; Universal Forms, Forms Exist in God’s Providence, All Good is From God, Evil Commends Good, Sin Is Seeking A Lower Good, and Metaphors for Good and Evil. Each of his arguments cover the topic in a different manner. It would only make sense to discuss each one individually.

1.      1. Universal Forms:

The argument of universal forms means that everything has form. What does not have form does not exist. Everything that is changeable is also formable. This means that Good and Evil are forms and both forms are changeable. Good can change to evil and evil can change to good, but they cannot be neither because they must remain as a form due to the fact that they are changeable. They cannot provide for themselves a means to be without form because they do not possess the means to do so.

2.      2. Forms Exist in God’s Providence:

This argument states that the forms mentioned above are only the way they are, changeable and formable, because they remain in the providence of a form that is not changeable and is eternal or immutable. Therefore, the forms of good and evil that change back and forth are only able to do so because of a divine form that created them, thus being God creating the idea of good and evil.

3.      3. All Good is From God:

This argument is probably the simplest to understand. It states that nothing can exist without God and all things God creates are good whether they be big or small, wholly good or with privation of good (evil).

4.      4. Existence Itself is Good:

The argument that existence in itself is good means that every form is good no matter how much good it may lack. As long as it is still in existence it is good because no form wholly evil can exist seeing as God made all things and all things made by God are good.

5.      5. Evil Commends Good:

This argument is similar to that of argument number 4 in that God creates all things and all things created by God are good. In other words, some things may not coincide with other things that are considered to be good and thus are dubbed as evil, but God can bring the good out of evil and therefore these things are still good no matter how little good may be brought from them alongside what is greater in goodness.

6.      6. Sin is Seeking a Lower Good:

This argument is said more as a day to day experience. It is about the free will of man. It says that free will was not created so that we could sin, rather it was created so that we may knowingly choose to do good instead of evil. If we choose evil then so be it but it’s purpose was to give us the opportunity to change from choosing the evil things to choosing the good things.

7.      7. Metaphors for Good and Evil:

This argument can be symbolized in many different ways, but I will only explain it in one to make things easy. The corruption of something, if something is corrupted then there is a privation of good in it. If it is not good, then it isn’t possible for it to be corrupted. If the entity were to become wholly corrupted then the thing would cease to exist because it is no longer good, but if the corruption is not whole then the entity will continue to exist.

            These are the seven arguments St. Augustine uses to explain the privation theory of good and evil. In my next post I will give my take on these seven arguments and how I feel about them.