The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion [.PDF]

[Vince Oudman]

The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion PDF

Download Here : The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion by Haidt, Jonathan (Paperback).pdf

 

The Righteous Mind by Haidt is an easy read with an interesting concept at its core: the idea that there is a difference between what is right or wrong and what is considered good or bad by the people who tell us what is right or bad. For example, do actions A and B both "right," or only one? Or, do they only differ in their consequences, but not their intentions? This is an interesting discussion to have when considering human behavior, and how our religious and political beliefs shape that behavior. In this respect, Haidt draws heavily from the work of Leo Tolstoy, and particularly his famous treatise, Think and Grow Rich.

At the center of the book is an extended metaphor regarding money - specifically how money can corrupt the right and the good. The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt identifies a sort of energy - or rightness - that is inherent in all of us. When this energy is threatened or when it is blocked, a person can fall into the trap of believing things are only partly right, or perhaps right for a given time, but only for that time. Once that protection is gone, the person can fall into a sort of depression or worse, start engaging in behaviors and thought patterns that would get them into trouble if they were aware of them.
The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt suggests that having a healthy balance of the right and the wrong is essential to living in a world where right and wrong sometimes feel like an alternate reality that requires special powers to see. The Righteous Mind also points out that many of the most successful people in the world have often exhibited characteristics of the Righteous Mind or have been driven by it. Indeed, many of the most successful business leaders and world leaders around the world exhibit some aspects of the Righteous Mind, or at least have been conscious of its presence. Perhaps you, too, could benefit from learning more about it.