Human Nature

[1000bluntz]

Do you believe that human nature exists ?
Do you think that hierarchy is part of human nature ?

please include any other thoughts you may have on this, it's a topic I've been been interested in discussing lately.

I think that human nature exists but certain characteristics of human nature are difficult to substantiate. I feel that there has to be a set of universal components that help us construct our consciousness. I strongly disagree with the notion that human nature is fixed, I think that our behavior and actions are directly influenced by our social circumstances. In America, the belief in fixed human nature is perpetuated by the state both directly and indirectly through the mainstream corporate media and educational system. We are often told that human beings are inherently evil and greedy, without legislation and law enforcement, human beings would be running around killing and stealing from each other. I believe that most of the violence and theft that goes on in America stems from poverty, I mean think about it..would you rob a liquor store right now for the few hundred bucks in the register or mug a person? Probably not..but say you were living in extreme poverty, you have a drug addiction because you're unable to mentally cope with your awful surroundings and you have a mouth or two to feed, not a lot of options. It's easy to overlook all of this because we're often told to "look away" from those who are homeless or in extreme poverty because whatever happened to them they brought upon themselves. This of course forces us to grow up feeling a serious lack of empathy for those who are in poverty, making their crimes that much more 'evil' to the public eye.

So I dunno, I guess I believe that it exists to a degree but I think that we've been indoctrinated to believe human nature is fixed and we're biologically programmed into being uninterested in acts of altruism.

 

[Mr. Sparta]

Isn't human nature just psychology? Of course it's a thing!

 

[Yarem4]

i think that the human nature is actually the leftovers of the basic human instinct of self-preservation we had before society was a thing, like the fear of the dark and the unknown. the reason why it seems like human nature is different everywhere is because with each new generation of humans the basic human instinct are bent to fit the society in which one lives. for instance OP said that in North america nobody really cares that much for the poor , but i live in a country where most people are poor by other countries standards and here everyone(ok most of us) tries to help those in economical trouble, however the low to mid-low classes have an inhuman spite against the higher classes which causes our country to be divided.

 

[sniperfreak223]

Yes, human nature does exist, it's just the name we came up for for the leftover animalistic traits within humans, things like survival instincts and sex drive.

 

[Migoto Da]

Human nature is a fickle thing. Some have more instinct-based actions, others have more thought-induced actions.


I like to think that most humans have repressed most of their 'wild' instincts, or, rather, 'Human Nature', due to being educated and not being raised in barbaric statutes.
It's all still there, but just supressed.

Though, that's probably just my interpretation of it.

 

[Yarem4]

Human nature is a fickle thing. Some have more instinct-based actions, others have more thought-induced actions.


I like to think that most humans have repressed most of their 'wild' instincts, or, rather, 'Human Nature', due to being educated and not being raised in barbaric statutes.
It's all still there, but just supressed.

Though, that's probably just my interpretation of it.

Maybe it's supresed because we don't really have need of it anymore? if that were the case, would the "human nature" take over if you were lost in the wild for a long period of time?

 

[sniperfreak223]

Maybe it's supresed because we don't really have need of it anymore? if that were the case, would the "human nature" take over if you were lost in the wild for a long period of time?

If you survived long enough for it to take over, I don't see why it couldn't, but given modern human society that first variable is a big one.

 

[Yarem4]

If you survived long enough for it to take over, I don't see why it couldn't, but given modern human society that first variable is a big one.

well what about the natives that live in the amazonian jungle or the small communities in Africa? those have been there for various generations without contact with the modern society. further research needed 8-l

 

[sniperfreak223]

those, and other native/agrarian societies are better in touch with their baser instincts, since not doing so would greatly shorten their life expectancy. It's the life of convenience in "developed" societies that has led to most of these instincts being repressed, since the way of life here takes the danger out of it. In developed countries, not having those survival instincts will rarely get you killed.

 

[Yarem4]

those, and other native/agrarian societies are better in touch with their baser instincts, since not doing so would greatly shorten their life expectancy. It's the life of convenience in "developed" societies that has led to most of these instincts being repressed, since the way of life here takes the danger out of it. In developed countries, not having those survival instincts will rarely get you killed.

if you don't use it you lose it i guess. which means that if there were a worldwide power out the first ones to fall would be the big societies like the USA or the UK, huh?
which further proves my hypothesis that the big cities are just bombs waiting to explode.

 

[Phyllostachys]

I believe that we do have instincts, or psychological/behavioral traits evolved as adaptations, as other animals have; and our actions are undeniably affected by them. Only difference is that we have greater control on them, enabling us to further modify our behaviors according to the context of surroundings, compared to most other species of animal thanks to developed frontal lobes.

As I view morality to be extrinsic to human nature(or any other things), I doubt whether instinct of ours can be labeled innately evil or innately good. What should be determined as being wrong or right should be actions, not instinct itself.

 

[sniperfreak223]

Morality in and of itself is a construct of the human mind, and IMHO would be the opposite of instinct. Instinct is something that is done subconsciously, and in my opinion can't be judged as either moral or immoral, as it's merely the desire for survival and self-preservation.

 

[Ieatcrackersandjumpcliffs]

No. It's all based on personal interpretation of subjective and biased perceptions of humanity and what humanity it has done in the past.

It's an objective fact that Man will seek to be free.
It's an objective fact that Man will see to be a slave.
Man will do this and Man will do that.

Absolutists are prideful morons that think they have everything figured out.

 

[1000bluntz]

It's an objective fact that Man will see to be a slave.

How do you figure ?

 

[Ieatcrackersandjumpcliffs]

How do you figure ?

I used that as an example of people having a simplistic, absolutist view of humans. It was also my criticism of people that have a constant pessimistic view of humanity. I think they feel adult and wise by shitting on people.

 

[Hooky]

What is referred to as "human nature" is the predatory impulses of an animal wrapped with a morality, which is learned through social interaction with other human beings - the etiquette to living with them. I.e. When you are brought up you are taught mannerisms such as being hygienic to a higher degree, sharing resources and collaborating. Not to mention the astounding ability to ask questions, which isn't really seen elsewhere in the animal kingdom, may be learned through interaction with others or is an evolved mechanism of a predatory impulse. Therefore, human nature exists. It really depends on how you define it as to its definition.

 

[Kit H. Ruppell]

Of course we have instinctive behaviors
This is the kind of dead-horse question that makes me laugh at philosophy.
But if you still insist, human nature has many facets (which don't agree with each other) that express themselves differently between individuals/groups.

 

[1000bluntz]

Of course we have instinctive behaviors
This is the kind of dead-horse question that makes me laugh at philosophy.
But if you still insist, human nature has many facets (which don't agree with each other) that express themselves differently between individuals/groups.

Wasn't really referring to instinctive behaviors.

I used that as an example of people having a simplistic, absolutist view of humans. It was also my criticism of people that have a constant pessimistic view of humanity. I think they feel adult and wise by shitting on people.

Ah I gotcha, sorry, flew right over my head.

 

[thoughtmaster]

Human nature, isn't that an oxymoron?

 

[DarrylWolf]

Running scientific tests to confirm or deny a hypothesis and finding yourself too egotistical or attached to your hypothesis to actually let go of it. Science is often used to confirm what we believe rather than teach us something new.

 

[Rassah]

Yes human nature exists. We are genetically predisposed to be social and feel empathy. It's how we and many other higher level species survive. However, this:

We are often told that human beings are inherently evil and greedy, without legislation and law enforcement, human beings would be running around killing and stealing from each other.

the idea that that we are inherently evil, is very obvious bullshit and is easily disproven. Just ask, aren't politicians and law enforcement also made up of humans? Aren't laws in a democracy created based on popular opinions of other humans? If we were inherently evil, then the humans comprising our politicians and law enforcement would be evil as well, and would be useless and redundant. Conversely, if we are already inherently good, then we really don't need law enforcement and politicians to "keep us all in line" so to speak, do we? (Just need them for dispute resolution and security against the few actually evil ones).

 

[Kit H. Ruppell]

Human nature, isn't that an oxymoron?

Hurr-hurr-hurr!