GRE® Essay: If a goal is worthy, then any means taken to attain it is justifiable

[Konstantin]

Hello!

Question:
If a goal is worthy, then any means taken to attain it is justifiable.

Answer:
I strongly believe that it is a too categorical statement. Our life isn’t black and white; it’s a complex colorful thing and every judgment should depend on the particular situation, rather than on absolute terms. However, even though I consider myself as a relativist, I’m sure that there are some universal virtues, like people’s lives, which are had to be preserved in any case.

Everyone has his own priorities and his decisions are completely depend on them. But no one can image more valuable things than a human’s life and health. I don’t speak about innate instincts, but about self-sacrifice, when a soldier covers a grenade by his body to save their friends’ lives. At the same time, there are a lot of individuals, who are able to murder or offend in order to receive some money or goods. You could say that these people are quite rare now and most of them are isolated. But, sometimes, they are our neighbors and coworkers, who don’t disdain to lie or prevaricate in order to improve their social status or wage. I don’t want to say that material well-being is the minor part of our lives, moreover I encourage everyone to work hard and have successful career. I simply want to say that there are worthy things and not and we have to do everything to achieve the formers.

Wars are the mirror of humankind because during them we reveal our subtle strengths and weaknesses as well. Some nations started wars in order to fill their exchequers; others had to defend their territory and future existence. During the Second World War, German aggressors smashed almost all European countries, but they were unsuccessful in the Soviet Union’s conquest. My compatriots known that a captivity were equal to death in Nazi’s concentration camps and they had been using all possible means, including spying, partisan warfare and children’s labor, to protect the existence of the nation. Eventually, Russians were succeeded and entire world has appreciated these efforts. Another example from this period of time is the nuclear bombing of Japanese cities in 1945. Truman had to make very hard decision between invading of islands with millions of casualties among military men and civilians on the one hand, and using of such devastation weapon as nuke on the other. The method was cruel. The aim was the victory and millions of lives. It was worthy.

People have to decide by themselves whether they want to do everything to achieve a goal. Arnold Schwarzenegger made up his mind to become the Mister of the Universe just in five years. He was successful; however, he sacrificed his health, using steroids and it was the price of the victory. As for me I can’t justify sportsmen, who use drugs on their way toward gold medals, but for them these means are appropriate, since the result is priceless.

On the one hand, it’s hard to say exactly, what is the worthy goal: there are global aims, like victory in a war, there are local, like winning the sports competition. On the other, there are different ways toward them: play fairly and probably fail or win dishonestly and succeed. My opinion is that only specific situation, people and times could determine what is appropriate.