Morality And Politics In Unpopular Essays, It had been worldly acknowledged in the right manner that man is a social animal. It is due to his god-gifted ability of intellect that he stands above the level of animality. Allah has created human beings as a rational entity; that’s why, many internal operations are always going on in his mind.
It is due to The brooding nature that many ideas occur and varnish in this and Some ideas may be helpful to him while others cause of a lot of destruction for him. Some useful ideas are stored in his mind and become a source of permanent knowledge for him. These are the ideas which add more to man’s experiences. Under the influence of good ideas, a man becomes more friendly. Russell is always of the view that those ideas can be recorded as helpful which add happiness to man’s nature. Though ideas can help man to a smaller or greater level yet it is very worthy to note here that ideas have so far not been very successful to help mankind.
There are many ideas which become a source of pleasure and amusement yet they add a little to human happiness, hence, these ideas can’t be regarded as fully helpful ideas. These are the ideas which open newer ways of experience and amusement which are not within the reach of animals. As we know that human intellect and genius are always in the process of brooding over any fact or matter, as a result, these abilities generate such ideas that add a variety of amusements to man. Apparently some ideas add to present worry but inwardly they serve as foresight and care for the future by providing remedies against the future ills.
It is a very sorry state of affairs that despite man’s intelligence and ideas, starvation death in men is its higher scale than it is observed among birds who do not even have the advantage of ideas. There is not doubt in saying that man gives birth to ideas because of the tension and anxiety.
Man is created for living in community or tribes and sometimes ideas also become a source of friendliness and brotherliness among mankind. Sometimes, on the one hand, Ideas cause close relationships of friendliness and brotherliness but on the other hand, these ideas also generate animal emotions in men. It is often observed that binds and animals don’t show such friendly atmosphere, rather they snatch and fight for dining. Man’s use of language had always served as uplifting man’s position superior to all other creatures of the universe.
At first, man’s this god gifted skill of communication was oral but later converted into written form. It is the use of language which enables a man to communicate his ideas to his other fellow human beings. Man tamed the animals and invented an agricultural system for fulfilling his daily needs of life. Both these rational inventions are the great results of helpful ideas. Similarly we can observe and say that mathematics and astronomy are the great results of the advantages of helpful ideas. Greeks made new discoveries by using the helpful ideas and made a great contribution in the history of science. In the modern world, scientists like Galilea and Newton are the founders of discoveries. Darwin’s discoveries or works caused a dramatic change in man’s knowledge of his own origin and these works also stirred up the Orthodox religious circles.
According to Russell, there are two types of ideas; technical and moral which have helped great to mankind. Speaking on the moral side of the ideas, Russell is of the view that human capacity for love, the human ability to appreciate beauty and envoy intellectual understanding and above all his emotionality of universal love reflect the angelic aspect of human beings. In spite of having such kind of superior angelic qualities, there also lies a diabolic or devilish side in human nature.
It means to say that he is also an embodiment of cruelty, greed, indifference; avarice, ambition, lust, violation, pride, etc. The history of atrocities was practiced by the Germans, the Jews, the Russians and the Germans showed man’s devilish aspect of his nature. Though Christ, Buddha and other ancient gods of Greece propagated brotherhood, friendliness and fellowship a lot yet this practice had affected human beings a little because man’s natural inclination is towards vice.
Taking about the idea of liberty, Russell argues though this idea is very important yet some rulers and nations mishandled it. Nazis grossly misused it while the communists exploited the liberty of the individuals in the name of state’s totalitarianism. There is no doubt that the liberty of the state is very necessary but it must not be so absolute to minimize the liberty of the masses. The liberty of an individual is as important as that of the liberty of the state. Here we see that Russell’s argument is absolutely right because in a state where there is no liberty of an individual or the masses, such state can’t be termed as a successful or flourishing state.
Russell absolutely favours that state in which there is an absolute democracy because democracy is a firm guarantee of the liberty of an individual. In a democratic country where there is liberty of an individual is usurped or snatched, such nation or country can’t be termed as a successful democratic state. In other words, we can say that without an individual’s liberty, democracy would merely be a mockery.
Supporting or favouring the ideas of law and of government, Russell argues that these have an important place among political ideas which have helped mankind a lot. And shows the precious contribution in prose.Both are important for the betterment of the people. Same can be applied in the case of the world government which is expected to come into existence. From the very early existence of – human life, there was an idea of the government of an absolute tyrannical monarchy but with the passage of time and gradually it converted into democratic government and democracy took the place of this government in some super powers of the world.
Russell further adds by saying that above all, now there is required a world government to solve all the problems of man. The formation of a world government would be only the logical culmination of the evolution of the idea of government, for the empires of antiquity grew from small kingdoms and from them grew the modern states. Russell very beautifully argues that recent developments in all over the world have made the smaller states lose much of their real Independence. As a result, they are merging into the big states and the idea of a world government is getting closer and closer.
There are only two states of America and Russia which are absolutely independent at the moment. There should be a day when their logical development merges into a single state. After the formation of the world government, the happiness and well-being of mankind would be started in the strict sense of the word.
Russell very optimistically states that world will be able to enjoy greater leisure, if disease and want are wiped out from the whole world. All this would be possible through technological progress which is sufficient in the process going on. Politicians can play a very vital role in this regard. They should pay more attention to keeping fellow men alive than killing them. The man of today is standing at the cross-roads from where he has to take a very crucial decision of choice; as one road goes to untold disaster while the other one leads to prosperity, happiness, security and well-being. Russell himself favours the second one as it leads a man to the road of success.
To conclude this above mentioned discussion, it can be said vehemently and forcefully that a man, being a rational entity, has the god-gifted ability of proofing good ideas which are helpful to mankind. Russell’s contribution in prose is remarkable .This very ability makes a man superior to animals. The idea of law and the idea of government which have great place among political ideas; ideas of democracy, ideas of enjoyments to man, ideas of curing the future ills, ideas causing of friendliness and brotherliness, ideas of forming a world government, etc. are all the helpful ideas for adding human happiness in the masses.
