Posted: Sun Jan 29, 2006 11:38 pm
Did you mean the "lower animals" need to stay in their place (not sure what/where that is, between domestication and dwindling wild areas) since this board is posted by members of Animalia...
Anthropomorphization does serve one useful function: reinforcing "humane" behavior. Those members of H. sap sap who do not perceive their fellow creatures as having emotions or the ability to feel pain have little compunction about meting out cruelty, at any level of the taxonomic chain, regardless of whether the recipients intellectualize about their situations or curse their tormentors. (Any naturally "amoral" members of the animal kingdom which might be cited for intrinsically "cruel" behaviour here would not be considered among its most sentient.)
-gailr
Anthropomorphization does serve one useful function: reinforcing "humane" behavior. Those members of H. sap sap who do not perceive their fellow creatures as having emotions or the ability to feel pain have little compunction about meting out cruelty, at any level of the taxonomic chain, regardless of whether the recipients intellectualize about their situations or curse their tormentors. (Any naturally "amoral" members of the animal kingdom which might be cited for intrinsically "cruel" behaviour here would not be considered among its most sentient.)
-gailr