Marcus's definitions of good and evil in Meditations are about as straightforward as you can get. Good is what is right, or what is part of your nature. Evil is basically just the opposite of good.
That may sound easy enough, but Marcus challenges us throughout the work when he says things like "everything that happens is just" or "nothing is inherently good or evil." He's working with a worldview that claims a benevolent creator—the universal Whole—whose goal is to maintain the order and health of the universe. Sometimes that means something scary, like bringing in wild beasts to devour Christians. But it's all good: anything brutal is merely the byproduct of the lovely orderliness of the universe.
According to Marcus, you'll only see evil if you make value judgments about the things happening to you. (And that is something that a good Stoic must simply never do.) Basically, evil is either doing things against your nature or interpreting things that happen to you incorrectly.
Questions About Good versus Evil
- How does Marcus define evil? How about good?
- What is the proper response to wrongdoing, according to Marcus?
- What does Marcus say about bad people?
- Why does Marcus want to be a good man, above all else?
Chew on This
Marcus believes that there is absolutely no reason to intervene if a man is doing something wrong. He's got his own directing mind to look after.
Marcus believes that the world is essentially a just place only because he's emperor. Given his unique status, it isn't possible for him to understand injustice.