What defines Humanity?

[RavingPenguin]

Bear with me for a moment as I explain my inspiration. I just finished the main plot line to Mass Effect and it got me thinking. What makes something Human? A non-food item? another race to be respected as if they were human? Xenophobia is something humanity may have to consider, and something many are not ready to do. However, what would make us consider an outside race (Alien or otherwise) as equal?

One could make the argument for sentience, however could a machine not be made sentient in the future, or perhaps the animals we have among us now? Dolphins and wolves have there own system of communication and posses relatively high intelligences, yet are not considered human. This leaves sentience on the back burner. How about Self-Awareness then? When a species attains the level of intelligence for self preservation and equilibrium with the environment, is it then considered to be human or humanoid? I don't have the answer to this one, though humanity in its current state is only beginning to reach this understanding. I have more questions than I do answers. In being so, I turn to you Escapist users, and I ask that you may share your input to shed light on the dark recess that is xenophobia.

TLR: What makes another race human? I.e. treated as such.
Note: Humanity refers to us treating other (perhaps other worldly) organisms as we would other people.

EDIT: Edits will be made to the OP for superior posts arguing excellent points, these points may be extrapolated some from the original posts. This will only be effective while I am at my computer. Posts of note will also be added.

Communication: The point was made that being trained to communicate was hardly human. This is true, though if I may, I'd like to expand that point. The ability to communicate may not be human, but perhaps the desire to do so is. If a sentient race were to make contact with NASA, would hummanity not make a feirce attemt to communicate back? Perhaps this plays a role in humanity.

Posts 9 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3402769],11 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3402808],13 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3402825],19 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3402869],23 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3402898],25 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3402950],30 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3403196],33 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/18.147634.3403264]

 

[MelasZepheos_v1legacy]

The ability to converse with us, and try to kill us. So we then try to kill them.

To be like humans, they have to be violent and imperialistic.

 

[RavingPenguin]

The ability to converse with us, and try to kill us. So we then try to kill them.

To be like humans, they have to be violent and imperialistic.

Chimpanzees can be taught to converse like us through sign language, and are a rather violent species. Yet we do not consider them human.

 

[AkJay]

Religion is what separates us from the animals, unfortunately.

 

[DannyBoy451]

The ability to converse with us, and try to kill us. So we then try to kill them.

To be like humans, they have to be violent and imperialistic.

Chimpanzees can be taught to converse like us through sign language, and are a rather violent species. Yet we do not consider them human.

Being conditioned to make a hand gesture that they associate with getting a treat is hardly a grammatical language.

 

[RavingPenguin]

Religion is what separates us from the animals, unfortunately.

Would that fall under belief of a higher power or belief in a society or realm outside of our planet?

I apologize if it seems that I ask to many questions, I am only trying to work this out.

EDIT:

The ability to converse with us, and try to kill us. So we then try to kill them.

To be like humans, they have to be violent and imperialistic.

Chimpanzees can be taught to converse like us through sign language, and are a rather violent species. Yet we do not consider them human.

Being conditioned to make a hand gesture that they associate with getting a treat is hardly a grammatical language.

Very true, and a very good point. I am only attempting to have people think outside the box and consider every point.

 

[Marowit]

being human.

That's how I'd define humanity...Besides, it sounds like you're talking about how we would define other *species* not races.

 

[Jedamethis]

Friendly Arguments

I doubt there are many other species that can argue like they're about to rip each others throats out, and turn out to be best friends

 

[Housebroken Lunatic]

The ability of advanced abstract thinking is what separates the human species from animals, so I'd say that this defines humanity best.

However, it is a flawed aspect in some ways, because were we to encounter another species capable of even more advanced thinking than us, then we would become the animals if compared to them.

Also I would not consider it proper to just label "being human" as being the definition of humanity, because if you stretch that argument a little, the only logical conclusion will be that anything with human DNA is "human". And that would entail giving the same "human rights" as living breathing humans have to human embryos, dropped human hair, cut human fingernails etc. etc.

So in my opinion, simply possessing human DNA does not make you "human" by definition. There are more abstract concepts to being human than just possessing a certain DNA configuration...

 

[lucaf]

well if they have technology similar or surpassing ours that would make it obvious. but what if WE find THEM, in perhaps a caveman stage. would we still consider them animals because we dont consider simple tool use as inteligent. mastery of sire perhaps? but then what if they are on a world were fire isnt possible (dodgy atmosphere)

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

The nature of humanity is a difficult thing to fathom and has been the subject numerous works ranging from philosophical, biological or theological.

At the end of it all, there are few things that humanity can claim as it's own without some sort of footnote or special consideration. Language - that is communication, exists in some form or another in all social animals. The power of logic, or simply to solve problems we have not encountered before has been seen in a number of different animals, including oddly enough the Crow. And if you look at emotion you find at least some evidence of their existance outside the behavior of a beloved pet - such as the apparent mourning of a mother gorilla over the untimely death of her offspring.

If there is one defining characteristic that I can identify as being solely human, I would say it is our drive to solve a problem for which we can see no immdeiate gain. In all examples of problem solving among animals, at the core you'll find there is a very specific reason the creature is trying to find a solution - generally to acquire food. Across the course of human history, you will find examples of implements and techniques that had no direct link to truly resolving a problem, but rather were discovered simply because it was possible for the people of the era to discover them. I submit therefore that being human is simply being a being who questions why or how something works without regard to the immedeate payoff. such knowledge may bring.

 

[Deleted]

"What defines Humanity?"

A dictionary.

Do I win?

 

[Danny Ocean]

Religion is what separates us from the animals, unfortunately.

What makes you say that?

First of all, this question is slightly flawed in my opinion.

Dolphins and wolves have there own system of communication and posses relatively high intelligences, yet are not considered human. This leaves sentience on the back burner.

I don't think that anything except humans can be considered human, for the obvious reasons. However, I will concede that other species can be equal, although none currently present on this planet. I mean, my definition of humanity would have to be the ability to think beyond emotion. As far as I know, this isn't seen anywhere else on the planet. It also allows us to advance ourselves in ways thought unimaginable through the conquering of fear in the pursuit of knowledge and the greater good, and for our own future. No matter how far-off it may seem. See this:

 

[Kasawd]

I would like to say one of the things about humanity that I know to be unique, to the best of my knowledge is that we cover up our natural scents with artificial ones in order to attract the opposite sex.

 

[El Poncho]

Religion is what separates us from the animals, unfortunately.

Elephants are known to pick up elephant bones and do things (which I have forgot) with them which could be seen as spiritual.

 

[teutonicman]

I know thumbs are pretty kick-ass.

 

[DannyBoy451]

"What defines Humanity?"

A dictionary.

Do I win?

Philosophy is redundant when you're within reach of a dictionary.

 

[lucaf]

the question i want to know is, how similar do they have to be to not be considered animals. i mean, do they need all our characteristics; logic, emotion, abstract thinking, ect. would we consider them equal if they used logic and abstract thinking, but not emotion, or other combinations?

 

[Cowabungaa]

Genetics. Only actual humans are you know, humans. Anything else is not human, but something else. Problem is that a lot of people a lot of times link "different" to "worse", and that is of course absolute nonsense. But no other species can be human, how can another species be human too? That's not excuse to not treat each other as equals, mind you.

Again, different does not mean worse, and the fact that we're not equal (not even individual humans are equal) does not mean that we're not equal worthy. Those are 2 completely different things.

 

[Marowit]

The ability of advanced abstract thinking is what separates the human species from animals, so I'd say that this defines humanity best.

However, it is a flawed aspect in some ways, because were we to encounter another species capable of even more advanced thinking than us, then we would become the animals if compared to them.
[/qoute]

That's difficult to parse though. What we define as abstract, may not be abstract by other intellegences. What we ultimately value, money/happiness, may not be what another intellegence values take survival and food for example. We take whales giving birth in the same cove 20 years later as a stunning accomplishment...for them it's easy-peasie-lemon-squeezie.

Also I would not consider it proper to just label "being human" as being the definition of humanity, because if you stretch that argument a little, the only logical conclusion will be that anything with human DNA is "human". And that would entail giving the same "human rights" as living breathing humans have to human embryos, dropped human hair, cut human fingernails etc. etc.

So in my opinion, simply possessing human DNA does not make you "human" by definition. There are more abstract concepts to being human than just possessing a certain DNA configuration...

Being human being =/ fingernails. Being a whole human is what makes you human.

Sure you can continue to argue that you could theoretically clone someone from those fingernails, but you won't end up with the same person (see identical twins for what I mean).

Being a human defines you as being part of humanity in my opinion.