Chapter 87
… and Endings
The inspiration for writing this book (as shared in the Preface) was a curiosity about human nature. I suppose that same interest was the reason I pursued the study of psychology and psychotherapy in undergraduate and graduate schools. Yet many questions remained after those classes and my years as a clinical social worker. Thus began more than a decade-long search for answers in hundreds of books and articles. I eventually employed AI technology to access more information sources. Writing this book has been an attempt to give more meaning to the quest.
Have all my questions been answered? Certainly not. It would be the height of hubris to think my book could encapsulate the entirety of our species. Even the ambition of finding peace in an understanding of man’s capacity for cruelty has proved beyond my reach. Many of our behaviors still unsettle my heart. But, at the very least, I am significantly more informed about a broad range of subjects. The book’s extensive bibliography is a testament to my indebtedness to many hundreds of brilliant philosophers, historians, social and psychological scientists, and neuroscientists. They were the ones who conducted the studies of the complexly simple species we call Humans. My task was to simply cull through their works, select the material that rang true (for this self-declared Pragmatic Humanist), organize the gathered material into a somewhat sensible structure, and throw in some original ideas of my own along the way.
What next? My plan is to use this book as a reference I can refer to as I attempt to grow into the man I can have genuine (not hubristic) pride in. Even as I approach my ninth decade, my ambition is to be a better person. The challenges facing the world in the 21st century require the very best in all of us to survive.
If you’ve read this far, I hope you have
been enriched and share my ambition to be a blessing to your fellow sapiens and
the natural world we inhabit. Grand goals to be sure. But certainly worth the
effort. I wish you well.