Author Topic: To be human.... (Read 1686 times)

icy wolf · « **on:** October 12, 2011, 03:59:45 AM »

open philosophical dissection. what is it to be human ?( please keep in mind the rules for the forums as i don't want this to be moved to the adult area.)

Sigcutio · « **Reply #1 on:** October 12, 2011, 06:04:50 AM »

Interesting question! To be human is to be in the unique state of understanding one is human in the first place and that one can think in abstract terms beyond what is concrete. I believe Hamlet sums it up nicely when he says, "What a piece of work is man..."

icy wolf · « **Reply #2 on:** October 12, 2011, 05:08:38 PM »

some people have said it is to be self a where but what is self a where? is it mealy just knowing who we are , but how dose one define what one is, through ones actions , clutter , beliefs ? or is it that we know where we are and that where alive. or is it free will as to decide on what we want to do and what not or to know the differences betwen right and wrong? or is to be human just to be classified as Homo Spain Spain ? or our ability to assess and understand any sutiantion and to understand the poetical out come ?

WingedZephyr · « **Reply #3 on:** October 12, 2011, 05:14:25 PM »

I think you're confusing "human" with "sentient."

x · « **Reply #4 on:** October 12, 2011, 06:03:37 PM »

Animals are mostly impulsive and follow instinct, but they still have a level of 'sentient' to them...Humans, by definition are: a bipedal primate mammal of the genus Homo.

So if you look at it that way, humans are monkeys that walk on two legs. But over time human has become so much more because we take 'sentient' to a whole other level. We don't just learn over one of our lifetimes. The whole human species learns as a whole, over time, and changes. Is this evolution or a human only trait? I'm not sure. But our ability to remember, create, think, and develop in full is much broader a trait than the same thing in any other animal.

To be human, you must be born from a human and posses human traits. Thinking like a human is optional (think of those who are brain dead...they are still human).

The real question is: are humans any more special than the animals around them?

✡ · « **Reply #5 on:** October 12, 2011, 06:16:50 PM »

humans are sentient, animals are (to a point) partially sentient, but the difference is that we react less to our more instinctual motivations, which is what allowed humans to be the superior species in the first place.