To be Human

[btbam]

I know this is a heavy subject, but i have confidence in several members to be able to hold a mature and robust conversation on the subject. I'm just very curious on this subject ever since I began studying political philosophy.

What does it mean to be human? What is humanity? What makes someone sub-human? Are the different stratifications of humananity? Etc.

I can see this panning out into several directions but I want to get some feedback before I offer my opinions.

[Beast of Bourbon]

I don't consider my self human (regarding social behavior).
Most humans are hypocrites and i couldn't care less if they'd drop dead in the next second.
-I will not send donations to the third world
-I will not buy an iphone and pretend to feel sorry for all the foxcon slaves
-I will not pretend that im sorry for HIV infected people when it was their own fault
-I think it's unnatural to suppress your primal feelings like revenge and hate
-I will not scream bloody murder when a women throws a cat into a trash bin

Some might call this "antisocial", in my opinion it is human nature.
So i think you could say i am more "human" then most other people.

[Cybertox]

I dont really want to talk about political philosophy on a Gaming forum.

[The Black Wolf]

I think to be human is to hate, never forgive, have flaws, etc. It's to have an earthly nature.

[yourmumsface17]

I think to be human is to hate, never forgive, have flaws, etc. It's to have an earthly nature.

I like to think 'hate' isn't a human nature, it's very primitive too 'hate' something. I like to think I don't 'hate' anyone.

[The Black Wolf]

I like to think 'hate' isn't a human nature, it's very primitive too 'hate' something. I like to think I don't 'hate' anyone.

You say it's primitive . . . do you think animals hate?

[mooninites]

I think to be human is to hate, never forgive, have flaws, etc. It's to have an earthly nature.

This but i wouldn't stop there. The whole array of emotion separates us from other animals. Hate is a small part. I would throw in love, pity and envy among other things. The ability to hope i would think is def unique to humans. Do animals believe in a higher power? I doubt it. I think to be human is to have total freedom. The freedom to think, feel and do whatever the heart desires.

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[TetanossauroRex]

According to the dictionary:

hu?man
n.
1. A member of the genus Homo and especially of the species H. sapiens.
2. A person


Technically, we are all human... The problem lies in our inner core, our true nature. We are no longer what we used to be, we keep suppressing our feelings like a few users have appointed.

-I will not scream bloody murder when a women throws a cat into a trash bin

Oh, come on...cats are lovely.

[The Black Wolf]

This but i wouldn't stop there. The whole array of emotion separates us from other animals. Hate is a small part. I would throw in love, pity and envy among other things. The ability to hope i would think is def unique to humans. Do animals believe in a higher power? I doubt it. I think to be human is to have total freedom. The freedom to think, feel and do whatever the heart desires.

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Animals can feel emotions, or so I believe. Cats and dogs love their owners. It's negative emotions that animals do not feel. Negative emotions are earthly or carnal.

[Icc]

what makes us human?

what makes us human is the constant desire to be in control of our environment. we want nothing more to be happy, and when something or someone infringes on that desire of personal happiness we begin to hate. we destroy and create to make the perfect environment for every individual.

if we didn't want to be in complete control why would we invent new things? why would we go to war? why would we build anything? animals don't have the desire to be in complete control probably due to less brain function but we would be in the same exact position as them if we didn't have a driving need to control everything around us.

[claud3]

humans have a different understanding of being human and its that, that makes you human. If everyone had the same answer or a close enough answer to being human. Thats when we loose are humanity

We live on this planet to search for answers for are own being and never get them, because we have to find them. Each individual on this planet always has one question and that is what is it to be human.. Its an inside question we ask everyday, and not even knowing we are asking it.... We humans are called humans because its a word that has no meaning, we are life forms that were created to live and die and to ask what is it to be human...

Instead of asking that, lets step back and ask why us and why should we always ask this question.... We seek the answer from others and its others that give the incorrect answers and believe it or not, Its not the answer you seek

We all have a individual steak in asking this and the answer we get will always be a different one, because that answer comes from us and us alone. We have to answer are own question about being human.... And its then you will understand what it is to be human

We have to ask are selfs individually
this question, because no one else can answer it for you

[mooninites]

Animals can feel emotions, or so I believe. Cats and dogs love their owners. It's negative emotions that animals do not feel. Negative emotions are earthly or carnal.

I was wrong because some animals have a range of emotion, including negative ones too. Take elephants for instance. They show jealousy, temper tantrums and get hung up about things. Like other animals they get depressed and angry. I know dogs sure do get angry, not too sure with cats due to lack of experience tho

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[LfCpS3]

Humans in general just want to dominate and control.

There is probably a higher chance of 1 guy setting of a nuclear bomb and killing everyone than their being no murders in the world for only 10 hours.

[Completely Average]

Animals can feel emotions, or so I believe. Cats and dogs love their owners. It's negative emotions that animals do not feel. Negative emotions are earthly or carnal.

You don't think animals feel negative emotions? You clearly haven't been around many animals.

Take my brother's cat for instance. His wife just had a baby, and the very first day they bring the baby home the cat decides for the first time in it's life that it's going to take a crap on their bed. You don't think negative emotion was involved in that?

My dog hates one of my neighbors. With everyone else she is as friendly as she can be, but there is one neighbor that she won't even let cross to our side of the street without her barking and trying to jump over the fence to get at him. You don't think there is some negative emotion there?


Go watch some wild monkeys or chimps for a while. Every day for a few months. I guarantee you that you'll see them display every emotion humans would.




Humans are just animals after all. If there is anything that seperates us from the rest of the animal kingdom then it's our desire to percieve ourselves as superior to them.

[Vulgotha]

Any meaningful discussion will have to go very deep.. To the most fundamental and core assumptions.

Is man unique compared to the animal kingdom?

Yes, clearly. We have conquered this world and we have no natural predators. We are the pinnacle example of an apex predator and we are superb manipulators of our environment. Sentient, capable of abstract and creative thought and introspection.

Is man endowed with a special existence- are we innately different from 'animals' and other biological organisms?

This depends. Does one believe in a higher power? At the very least, does one believe in an intervention by a higher intelligence (biological or supernatural) in our development?

If yes, then we do indeed have a very special existence and we stand apart from nature on some level (varying by degree based on the nature of the assumed intervention\higher power).

If not, then no. We are not special, we are not unique nor endowed with some sort of special fate or mandate. Our existence is only interesting in that we have beaten the odds to become what we are today. We are the winners of the ultimate contest here on earth.

In a broad sense then, with an answer that can include either of the above scenarios, what does it mean to be human?

To reason, to wonder, to build, to create, to conquer, to destroy, to love, to hate. To do what we are doing now, utilizing our higher powers of intellect to formulate ideas and concepts above and beyond what natural selection and survival would have us be concerned with as a species, at least in relation to our environment and other species. The biggest threats to our survival now are cosmic, anthropic and resource oriented.

[jj03]

being human is so much more than being an apex preditor...our ability to make ourselves evolve as people through self evolution. i try hard to be a better person everyday...despite the shit that life slings at us. we have the ability to be great..surely thats the ultimate goal..

[Vulgotha]

We are defined by our success. We are at the apex of nature on this planet.. From a purely naturalist point of view, this is very crucial to our development. We've been conquerors our entire existence.

[jj03]

the world needs more love now than it has done...

The dude abides....

[Vulgotha]

I do not disagree that love would be a wonderful thing to spread in this world.

[The Black Wolf]

You don't think animals feel negative emotions? You clearly haven't been around many animals.

Take my brother's cat for instance. His wife just had a baby, and the very first day they bring the baby home the cat decides for the first time in it's life that it's going to take a crap on their bed. You don't think negative emotion was involved in that?

My dog hates one of my neighbors. With everyone else she is as friendly as she can be, but there is one neighbor that she won't even let cross to our side of the street without her barking and trying to jump over the fence to get at him. You don't think there is some negative emotion there?


Go watch some wild monkeys or chimps for a while. Every day for a few months. I guarantee you that you'll see them display every emotion humans would.




Humans are just animals after all. If there is anything that seperates us from the rest of the animal kingdom then it's our desire to percieve ourselves as superior to them.

That doesn't mean that's emotions, that could be more instinctive or animal behavior.

In the case of the cat, if they forgot to keep the boundaries up being preoccupied with the baby, then that's just instincts or animal behavior.

The dog case is more likely animal behavior than the cat's case because some dogs are bred to act aggressive. Reputable breeders of German Shepherds sometimes breed "working german shepherds" and these dogs are wired to have a degree of drives and aggression.

[The Black Wolf]

And by the way, I've been around plenty of domestic animals, not saying wild animals. I grew up with dogs and cats. So I've been around animals a lot more than you think or assume.

[Vulgotha]

I strongly disagree with every fiber in me. Animals most definitely feel emotions, both positive and negative. Many animals are capable of sentience, humans do not have a monopoly on this.

I feel that many individuals try to segregate man from animal on the basis of emotions- because we feel this legitimizes the notion that we have souls while the rest of the animal kingdom does not. Usually this is for religious reasons.

I can sympathize with this aim, but I think that targeting emotions is a misguided endeavor. It cannot be denied that animals feel along with think, so if we wish to distinguish ourselves by defining that human 'spark' it must be in other terms.

[Beast of Bourbon]

I think most people just segregate man from animal to make themselfs feel better about eating/killing/mistreating them.
To me they're equal - not because animals are "as good as humans" just because "humans aren't better then animals".

90% of our actions are driven by primal feelings we're just not honest about it, animals on the other hand can't fake it, that might be the reason why some people prefer the company of animals.

[Funeralfog]

lying to ourselves about a bunch of nonsense makes us want to feel we're above animals, is the sort of horseshit that makes us Humans.

[yourmumsface17]

You don't think animals feel negative emotions? You clearly haven't been around many animals.

Take my brother's cat for instance. His wife just had a baby, and the very first day they bring the baby home the cat decides for the first time in it's life that it's going to take a crap on their bed. You don't think negative emotion was involved in that?

My dog hates one of my neighbors. With everyone else she is as friendly as she can be, but there is one neighbor that she won't even let cross to our side of the street without her barking and trying to jump over the fence to get at him. You don't think there is some negative emotion there?


Go watch some wild monkeys or chimps for a while. Every day for a few months. I guarantee you that you'll see them display every emotion humans would.




Humans are just animals after all. If there is anything that seperates us from the rest of the animal kingdom then it's our desire to percieve ourselves as superior to them.

I loled We've all been there...

Animals defo do get mad though, for instance my mums dog won't let me pick her up, she lets everyone else pick her up, but if I do she goes mental I think it stems because the first time I met her I didn't pay her any attention and maybe I was a dick towards her (Didn't hurt her or anything, just wasn't very nice maybe). So I think she holds a grudge, or assosciates me with something negative.