Does Society Make Us Human?

[Eldritch]

I don't mean physiologically human - we'll be physically humans regardless of society.

 

I'm talking about a civilized human being. Does society make us human? Do you agree?

[Reborn Outcast]

Well its tough but yea I think so. If we live with animals in the middle of the jungle without ever seeing ANY human if our lifetime, they I would say that we're not all psycologically human.

[Eldritch]

I agree with that, myself. There's cases of feral children (note : this does not necessarily mean they were raised by animals) that have very little intelligence, no way of speaking, etc. They have no idea what it means to be "human."

[Reborn Outcast]

Yes, you're always going to by physically human but psycologically, no.

[C'jais]

That's completely subjective.

 

What's civilized to one person may be savage to another.

[Reborn Outcast]

Originally posted by C'jais

That's completely subjective.

 

What's civilized to one person may be savage to another.

 

Dang C'jais we have opposite views on EVERYTHING.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But you are right.

[ShadowTemplar]

The fact that we are human enable us to make a society (ants do too, but that's a different kind). Not the other way about.

[WolfmanNCSU]

Hmmmm, sounds like Nature vs Nurture to me.

[nova_wolf]

Being human is to be alive - human is our species.

 

Civiliised is as civilised does.

 

Ones persons idea of an insult could be a thank you.

 

'Many of the truths we cling too depend upon our point of view'

 

Truths, facts, ideals & many more besides.

 

This arguement is based on 'judegment calls'. In propsotional logic, a statement is only a proposition if it has a definite True or False value.

That is what civilisation has created to true to rexplain occurances and theories.

But it is flawed in so many cases because of this very sort of discussion.

 

Human is to be alive.

 

Civilised is to live by not instincts but rules, morals, codes, laws.

 

Man - this is so deep, I've lost myself!

 

 

(PS - Perhaps this is mature enough for the Senate Chambers?)

[Qui-GONE Jinn]

So that means a cat is a human?

 

 

Does "being human" equal "being able to function in society"?

If so: Yes, we are made human by society.

 

And this could be any culture and society, so differences in cultures doesn't matter on this subject, Cjais.

 

Humans have to be part of a community if they are going to be functioning as "humans" do in their community. A person has to be socialized by society to be acting like a human, and not an ape.

An example of this is german Kaspar Hauser, who'd been kept in a basement the first 26 years of his life. When he was finally released, he acted like a wild animal. He could barely speak, ate like a wolf, and it proved almost impossible to teach him anything at all.

 

This proves my point.

[Eldritch]

Originally posted by C'jais

That's completely subjective.

 

What's civilized to one person may be savage to another.

 

That's true, but in terms of this question, I want you to examine it from your own point of view in your own culture. Don't worry about others when answering this question; there will always be cultural differences.

 

I'm looking for the different opinions in cultures, not a way to get out of answering the question.

[C'jais]

Originally posted by Qui-GONE Jinn

So that means a cat is a human?

 

Why would it? No inference for that.

 

Does "being human" equal "being able to function in society"?

If so: Yes, we are made human by society.

 

And this could be any culture and society, so differences in cultures doesn't matter on this subject, Cjais.

 

What was civilized in the dark ages was for Christians to go out and kill heretics. The pinnacle of civilization, oh yes.

 

Obviously, if you under the idea that the only thing that makes us human is to be able to function in society, then yes, society of course "makes us human". But the point is, there are differing degrees of humanity then, since every culture is different from your own.

 

Thus, there is no definite parameter for what's "human". The only thing that makes us human to me is the DNA code. All else is subjective.

[-s/<itzo-]

of course it does.

 

through time we developed morals and what is right and what is wrong.

 

in nature we are barbaric. just think about it, why do people kill people? its because its our intincts.

 

if we grew up with out rules we would be like other animals.

[RoguePhotonic]

Human is human...that's the species name....on the next scale we are animals...on the next we are biological organisms.....

[Eldritch]

Originally posted by RoguePhotonic

Human is human...that's the species name....on the next scale we are animals...on the next we are biological organisms.....

 

Actually, human and animal are on the same scale. We are part of the animal kingdom, after all.

[RoguePhotonic]

Yeah your right....2 names....I think I was thinking on name scales....or somethin lol:confused:

[Kain]

in my honost*somewhat ignorant*opinion, all one needs to be human is the inner call to destroy ones self and all others, a basic human instinct i might add. being human blows. i think its all in the subconcious.

[Mr. Mofo]

Yeah, we're so civilized. We mate, have children, and live in groups. Wait, don't monkeys do that, too? Bleh, build a couple of houses and we think we're so bad. Me, I prefer bliss ignorance.

[El Sitherino]

I believe society can affect who we are and who we will become. whether it is good or bad. society is always shaping our emotions and our thoughts.

[BCanr2d2]

Society can make us human, but it is the choice of the individual to choose to join society, interact, learn morals that gives us "human".

We can learn most things even with out society, so I tend to disagree, although we are social animals. We are not the only social animals, so we can not call it something that seperates us from the rest psychologically.

 

I say there are other things, besides society that makes us human. It is hard to put it in words, but in our ability to think, question, analyse, abstractly think that makes us human psychologically. It's our entire nurture/nature way that has evolved us to what we are today, to as to what we think of as human. I believe we are one of the rare animals that has such a non-dependence on instinct, a lot of our thinking is not a natural reaction.

[Eldritch]

Originally posted by BCanr2d2

Society can make us human, but it is the choice of the individual to choose to join society, interact, learn morals that gives us "human".

We can learn most things even with out society, so I tend to disagree, although we are social animals. We are not the only social animals, so we can not call it something that seperates us from the rest psychologically.

 

Aside from fulfilling the primary needs (eating, drinking, sleeping, mating), what "things" do you think we learn without direct observation of someone else doing them OR someone teaching us them?

I'm curious what you think these "things" we learn without society (society includes family and friends, folks) are.

[Mr. Mofo]

I still don't understand you humans, Jim.

[Eldritch]

Blech. Star Trek... *feels dirty, goes off to take a shower*

[XERXES]

the Chinese were very traditional for a LONG time, and believed everybody else in the world were barbarians and inferior. Does that make us less human? It all comes down to how you define a "human"

[Eldritch]

Ok, there seems to be a bunch of people debating what a "human" is, rather than answering the question, so I'm going to define what I meant by human when I posed the question.

 

Human : adj. of, characteristic of, or having the qualities typical of mankind

 

I'll also rephrase the question : If you had absolutely zero contact with any other human being, would you be the same person you are now? Consider personality, ethics, morals, values, and your own (we already know there will be cultural differences when answering the question, so just answer it as it applies to you) cultural (or sub-cultural) norms when answering.