Acts Of Goodness

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[Name] ENGL 1301 23 September 2004 Acts of Goodness Most of the time, all it takes is a meaningful story on an excerpt to really contemplate and rethink your stand on a certain premise. When thinking about goodness, we have to first evaluate our perception of goodness. What does it really mean to be “good”? Is it the goodness that is rampantly portrayed in moral theories? Is it the virtue taught to children through fairy tales and Disney movies? Many people perceive actions of goodness to be subjective. Some see goodness as “charity”, “social morality” or “honesty”. All these ideas of goodness however, ultimately portray an elementary perception of true goodness and are extensively represented in contemporary literature and philosophy. In the excerpt “Good Samaritan” by KJV, the Samaritan’s selfless act epitomizes a notion of goodness that is truly benevolent, with no ulterior motives and expecting nothing in return. However, the grandmother in “A Good Man Is Hard To Find” by Flannery O’Connor, with her manipulative and cantankerous mannerisms, represents the exact opposite of this definition of goodness. In their own contrasting ways, each of these stories illustrates a definition of goodness. There are few stories that provide an apt example of true goodness and morality better than the “Good Samaritan”; a notion that can be contrasted [Name] 2 with the character of the grandmother in “A Good Man Is Hard To Find”, which, being the antithesis of goodness, costs her her life. The Good Samaritan exemplifies the true and selfless meaning of goodness unlike the grandmother, whose calculating demeanor negates her “act” of goodness. The background of the story of the “Good Samaritan” is a lawyer, who asks Jesus what he should do to attain eternal life. By that he meant “what could he do to be a better person.” To answer his question, Jesus proceeds to
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