Chapter 5
Our
Cruel Heritage: The case for Pessimism
As a counterpoint to the previous
chapter, a compelling argument can be made that humans are, by nature, selfish and cruel. We’ve seen these characteristics in news accounts, in difficult people
we’ve met, and at times even in ourselves - at the very least, in our impulsive
thoughts.
Evolutionary science suggests that
selfishness is a survival mechanism. Natural selection favors those who prioritize
their own survival and the continuation of their genetic line. Various
religions recognize this trait too. The Christian concept of original sin
states that the human race is basically depraved and sinful. We speak sinful
words, we do sinful deeds, and we have impure thoughts.
Some argue that without the constraints
of societies and their norms and laws (the Veneer Theory), we would revert to a
state graphically portrayed in William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies.
The infamous Stanford Prison Experiment (1971) revealed how quickly ordinary individuals
become abusive when placed in positions of power. In real life, we see these tendencies played out in genocides (e.g., The Holocaust, The Rwandan Genocide), civil war (e.g., Syrian Civil War), and even Online cruelty (i.e.,
cyberbullying). Once a person or group is deindividualized and dehumanized,
they are likely targets of abuse by others. Psychopathy, narcissism,
Machiavellianism, and sadism are far more common than we may be comfortable admitting. Labeling others as ‘Evil’ is lazy because all brains are a bit
sadistic.
Pretty scary and disheartening, right? But
what is the reality? Which portrayal of human nature is more accurate?
….
the Verdict
The fact of the matter is that Humans
have the capacity to be both kind and cruel – depending on various factors. If
we were raised by abusive parents, we might (but not necessarily) grow up to
raise our own children in like manner. If we live in a harsh region, we might
(but might not) reflect that behavior. If our brains are miswired to lack empathy, we might grow up to be sociopathically cruel, though not always.
I side with social scientists who argue
that violence, greed, and cruelty often arise from fear,
resource scarcity, systemic inequality, or cultural conditioning - not from an
inherent malevolence. When people feel safe, valued, and connected, they tend
to act with kindness and empathy. The darker aspects of human behavior are more
accurately seen as distortions or suppressions of our basic nature, rather than
expressions of it.
Evolutionary psychologists teach us
that a significant factor in determining our behavior toward others is whether
we consider them to be one of “Us” or one of “Them”. Early humans learned the
benefits of caring for those in their own tribe (typically a group of fewer than 200) and of being wary and ready to fight those from other tribes. Toward the
former, we tend to be kind. Toward the latter, we have the capacity to be cruel.
The challenge these days, of course, is that the world is, figuratively
speaking, a much smaller place. Also, our tools of destruction and mass murder
are so much more effective. In the 1940s, we engineered genocide. In that same
decade, we developed nuclear weapons.
We will explore some of these dynamics
in greater depth in PART IV (Social Relations) and particularly in the chapter
titled “The Hierarchy of Human Relationships”.