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Originally Posted by earllogjam  I've been thinking about this one for a while and have come to the conclusion that human nature is determined not so much by an individual but rather how that individual is treated. It is a karmic reaction of sorts. People who are not loved are less likely to love or even capable of giving love, more likely to harbor hate and evil. People who have been showered with love have a greater propensity to give love, to be good natured. |
I was going to go into some long Locke/Hobbes/Rousseau thing but meh. For once I'll shut up. Your opinion is very observant and true I think. Not sure about the karma part because I do know exceptions to the rule. We're blank slates, ready to respond to love and hatred.
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I believe being altruisitic is hardwired into us because we are social creatures by nature and being good to others conveys a survival advantage. Social groups can be evil towards one another but within the group they show good nature to each other. Good human nature is taught and can only exist in a social group, bound by the need for others. It is the lube that make societies work. It is what separates men from animals. It is necessary for our survival. And good cannot exist without evil so we must have evil.
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Also true but doesn't separate us from animals. From ants on up, cooperative societies of animals work exactly the same way. We're not so different. Animals can have favorite friends in their group, take on specific group roles, try to curry favor with high status animals, they can have enemies too and Jane Goodall even recorded a case of premeditated murder among the chimpanzees of Gombe. We're a lot more animalistic than we'd (at least some of us) like to think.