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“Anthropomorphism” and “Reductionism”
Terms that assume our human separation from “nature”
Those of us who say that other animals, and even plants, can experience happiness and sadness are often accused of anthropomorphic projection of our human emotions onto other forms of life. They overlook the evidence of animals and flowers basking in the warmth of a sunny day and shivering or closing up on a cold and rainy day. Dare I suggest that even a new, well-oiled machine is happier running than a rusty, worn-out one that can barely run?
On the other hand, those of us who think that we humans are impressively intricate biochemical “machines” are accused of reductionism — reducing our complex behavior and experiences of life to “mere” physics and chemistry. They overlook the increasingly detailed explanations from biology and neuroscience of how our bodies, including our brains, actually work, and how our sensory, cognitive, behavioral, and emotional experiences are produced.
What a joy and sorrow it is for me to exist temporarily as a communicating primate among others of my amazingly capable and yet infuriatingly violent species.
