Animal Paper

Humans and Animals. That's how we often think of it. There's a us and them mentality, as if we were separate. But we really are the same aren't we? We breathe, we bleed, we eat, we mate, we love, we die. We do all that and more.

"No single essential difference separate human beings from other animals."

Even so, we are inclined to think otherwise. People seem to think that we are above animals, superior to animals because we are capable of thinking and are logical and are calm rational beings, rather than instinctual like them. I don't think that's true. I think they feel just as much as us. They can think as well. In class we were presented with a dilemma similar to this-- If we had the choice to save one of these animals, a baby, a bird, a monkey, a dolphin. Most people chose to save the baby. But I don't really think its right to place ourselves of greater importance than them, than the animals, trees, or flowers because they have just as much a right to life as we do. Being here in this world as we are, aren't we all in the same boat? Aren't we all headed to the same route? Aren't we all the same.
On the other hand it is understandable that its like this; that we aren't able to relate. Most of the time we don't even come in contact with other animals, around 95% of our time is spent with other people and what we are more familiar with, we can relate to more. Maybe that's why most people can't relate. We go to work for most of the day, in which we are surrounded by people, and then we go home and sleep. Interaction with other animals are far and few in between, so the only animals we can see are those like us. As kids, we also go to school, spending around 17 years of our lives there; 18 if you count preschool, 27 if you want to become a doctor (another four years of med school and 6 years in residency). The way we're taught emphasizes the mind rather than the body because that's "human" and it is yet another way for us to be separate from the animals. We are taught to think. We spend the day in school sitting on hard chairs listening and writing. Society tells us that we should prioritize thinking over being physical, and its little wonder people can forget their animal side.
Living in a somewhat religious society, people are inclined to think otherwise. According to Genesis, God said, "Let us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over fish of the ocean and over birds of the heavens, and over the cattle and over all the earth and over all the crawlers crawling on the earth." (Genesis chapter 1:26) when people believe something like that its no wonder that there's a chasm between humans and animals. It would seem like humans are "above" animals since it says in the bible that they were meant to reign over animals. We think the world revolves around us. So we think that's why the animals are there so we can rule over them. The myth perpetuates that everything was built so it would provide for us, the humans.
Maybe if we'd realize that we are animals as well, we'd be able to be more in touch with our physical side. Its something that we can forget being cooped inside all day. In class when we played Rabbit and Tiger, and tag, we got to run and chase and be reminded of that. Many people noted that they felt like they were kids again. We do seem more in touch with that side of us as kids, when we could just run and play. People had fun and seemed happier being able to run. We weren't worrying about anything, we were just doing and being. As we got older it seems that play and activity got replaced by books and lessons. Books and learning does have its place but I feel that it has to be balanced by this as being active seems just as beneficial to our health and mind as learning is.
Another reason we don't see ourselves as animals is because of the belief in duality. That the body and the mind are separate things when in fact they are very much connected. We'll often hear the phrase "Mind over body" or this famous quote by Rene Descartes, "I think therefore I am" meaning that your mind is what's in control of this vessel, your body. That the body was only a fleshly servant and when we perished the soul will go on. He believed that every human had something called a Homunculus, which was something that separated us from the animals. But it was only something that humans had. The reactions in other animals was just an impulse, like when the doctor hits your kneecap with a tool and it lifts up. That's why some scientists would do experiments on animals because they thought animals didn't have one of these Homunculus, "no one was home". Even when the animal cried it was just a "reaction". Descartes's belief that only humans had souls was able to continue the belief that humans and animals kept us separate since it thought that only humans were capable of thought.
Scientific Classification is a method used by scientists to classify animals into different categories, and this too contributes to the thought that humans and animals are apart. Its separated into Kingdom,Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species, What's funny is, that our scientific classification does classify Humans under the Kingdom, Amalia, and in a way accepts that, but at the same it separates Humans into their own separate species. So its saying that even though we are the same, we are apart. Also in this web, humans are called "homo sapiens sapiens", Latin for "wise wise humans or knowing humans"(Goodman). This and religion, creates the theological thought that evolution was leading up to us.

I think I used to think this way too, because that's what we have been taught in the stories by writers and by society up to this point. In poems or novels, we learn about reasons why man is separate from animals. So its easy to believe what you were brought up believing because that is what you know. But I guess that's what life is for, so we can experience and know more things. When we can see past these obstacles, we can live more good and meaningful lives because we'll know that its okay to be an animal. It's natural to play and be physical. We do not need to rely on all these pills and drugs to get by. Like when women give birth, they can do without the epidermal and the sometimes unnecessary Cesarean sections because birth is a natural process as well and animals have been able to do it for the past few centuries without drug interference. Another benefit to knowing we're animals is experiencing and just enjoying the moment. As animals we can just enjoy doing and being just like we were when we were at the park. When thinking of ourselves as only humans we can get caught up in physical time and getting overly worried about things we can't control. We are animals and knowing that can help us live a more good and meaningful life.

Goodman, M., Tagle, D., Fitch, D., Bailey, W., Czelusniak, J., Koop, B., Benson, P., Slightom, J. (1990). "Primate evolution at the DNA level and a classification of hominoids".

Popcorn

I made homemade popcorn for the first time today. It came out pretty good. I think the "recipe" is around 1 tblspn of olive oil (or any oil) at medium high heat, 1/4-1/2 cup of kernels, and 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt. I'm eyeballing this lol.

I was very excited, and my mom ate it all, she was complaining before, but once it was made she beasted! I liked it alot too, the sugar carmelized alittle and I added it while the popcorn was popping, which may or may not have been a good idea because some of it popped out of the pan. But I really liked the end result, so I guess the clean up was worth it.

The simplest things seem to give me the most joy.