What I Learned From Tickling Apes
Sunday, April 10, 2016
"The term anthropomorphism, which means “human form,” comes from the Greek philosopher Xenophanes, who protested in the fifth century B.C. against Homer’s poetry because it described the gods as though they looked human"........ "(Today), it is typically used to censure the attribution of humanlike traits and experiences to other species"........... "Animals don’t have “sex,” but engage in breeding behavior"............ "They don’t have “friends,” but favorite affiliation partners"................"By explaining the smartness of animals either as a product of instinct or simple learning, we have kept human cognition on its pedestal under the guise of being scientific"......................"In our haste to argue that animals are not people, we have forgotten that people are animals, too"................."The great philosopher Aristotle put all living creatures on a vertical Scala Naturae, which runs from humans (closest to the gods) down toward other mammals, with birds, fish, insects and mollusks near the bottom"........................... "Comparisons up and down this vast ladder have been a popular scientific pastime, but all we have learned from them is how to measure other species by our standards"............... "Keeping Aristotle’s scale intact, with humans on top, has been the unfailing goal"............................"When our ancestors moved from hunting to farming, they lost respect for animals and began to look at themselves as the rulers of nature. "............In order to justify how they treated other species, they had to play down their intelligence and deny them a soul"...................... "It is impossible to reverse this trend without raising questions about human attitudes and practice".............."Increased respect for animal intelligence also has consequences for cognitive science"................ "For too long, we have left the human intellect dangling in empty evolutionary space"................ "How could our species arrive at planning, empathy, consciousness and so on, if we are part of a natural world devoid of any and all steppingstones to such capacities?"................ "Wouldn’t this be about as unlikely as us being the only primates with wings?"----------Primaltologist Frans De Waal nails it square on as it relates to our species(humans) needing a .360 degree wake up call as it relates to how we see and treat out fellow earth travelers,,,,,,,,,,,,,,wild creatures deserving to exist and pursue "life. liberty and the pursuit of happiness", same as us
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjNgM-tzIXMAhXM5iYKHXgDDa8QqQIIHTAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2016%2F04%2F10%2Fopinion%2Fsunday%2Fwhat-i-learned-from-tickling-apes.html&usg=AFQjCNGvB2iDxEcy3lu5hgNxntsDH9q6zQ&bvm=bv.119028448,d.eWE
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
1 comment:
I get really irked at the "scientist-types" who ALWAYS view Anthropomorphism as an inaccurate, unprofessional term. They limit themselves enormously in their views of other creatures by NOT considering behavioral similarities and motivations from animals. If you really want to see a "scientist" squirm, just get one to try and explain "play" behavior in scientific terms--something easily recognized for what it is even between species! But some scientists will split their spleen trying to use ANY term but "play" to describe the behavior! What I believe, is that, sure, you must be careful in interpreting other animals' behaviors, but like anything else, there is BAD anthropomorphism, and GOOD anthropomorphism. Sometimes, other critters DO behave/feel/think/reason very similarly to us bipedal primates......L.B.
Post a Comment