Humans Are Rationalizing CreaturesSo convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable creature, since it enables one to find or make a reason for anything one has a mind to do.
When Franklin says this, he had been a vegetarian for years, for ethical reasons. One time he is on a ship, and notices how wonderful the cooked fish smell, but how can he justify eating something that has been subject to an unprovoked murder? Then he notices that inside the stomach of one of the fish were several smaller fish. Well,"if you eat one another, I don't see why we mayn't eat you." So Franklin ate heartily. The above quote shows Franklin's vast insight into human nature. I have often thought that the reason human rationality evolved in the first place was to provide explanations for our behavior that make us look good. The heart will do as it wishes, for reasons we don't quite understand, then provide post-hoc explanations. Are we rational creatures or rationalizing creatures?
No comments:
Post a Comment