Khadijah Fisher
“Why should you be concerned with being a good person?”
According to Webster, the term good, when used as an adjective means to be desired or approved of; when used as a noun it means to either be morally right/ righteous or to be a benefit or advantage to someone or something. So, as you can see the term “good” is very subjective. It’s almost like a social contract. As a child, I was often told to be good whenever my parents dropped me off at a friend’s house. I was concerned with being good in terms of obeying not only my parents but other authority figures as well. I think, to my parents, good meant being not only obedient but respective as well.
I’m concerned with being a good person because it’s emotionally healthier, it portrays how others perceive you and it helps with your self-esteem, which is one of the principals of concern in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Esteem needs are classified into two categories, according to Maslow. The first category is esteem for oneself; which includes dignity, achievement, mastery and independence. The second category is the desire for reputation or respect from others. Maslow stated that people are motivated to achieve certain needs and that some needs, like Esteem, take precedence over others. Psychologically being good to others provide me with a feeling of accomplishment because I believe it helps humanity and goodness helps society move forward. I believe in “killing people with kindness”, I think this provides me with a sense of achievement and dignity because it takes a lot of growth to act in such a way. It also takes a lot to lay your pride to the side to remain nice or maintain your character when someone is not being nice to you.
Growing up, I was always told to treat others the way I wanted to be treated, so if I didn’t want someone to be nasty toward me I wouldn’t act that way either. I think being unintentionally good to others plays a major role in the intimate relationships and friendships that we accrue throughout our lives. The bible says in Proverbs 18: 24 “A man who has friends must be frien...
