I think we need to start thinking about grounding our moral systems in our biology. Frans de Waal More Quotes by Frans de Waal More Quotes From Frans de Waal To endow animals with human emotions has long been a scientific taboo. But if we do not, we risk missing something fundamental, about both animals and us. Frans de Waal natureanimalscience The enemy of science is not religion... . The true enemy is the substitution of thought, reflection, and curiosity with dogma. Frans de Waal curiosityreflectionenemy If we look straight and deep into a chimpanzee's eyes, an intelligent self-assured personality looks back at us. If they are animals, what must we be? Frans de Waal eyemotivationalinspirational Darwin wasn't just provocative in saying that we descend from the apes - he didn't go far enough. We are apes in every way, from our long arms and tailless bodies to our habits and temperament. Frans de Waal armsbodylong I sometimes try to imagine what would have happened if we’d known the bonobo first and the chimpanzee only later—or not at all. The discussion about human evolution might not revolve as much around violence, warfare and male dominance, but rather around sexuality, empathy, caring and cooperation. What a different intellectual landscape we would occupy! Frans de Waal empathyintellectualcaring We are territorial, power-hungry and even more brutal than chimpanzees. Frans de Waal chimpanzeesbrutalhungry We are by far the most contradictory of all primates. An animal with this much internal conflict has never lived on this earth. Frans de Waal conflictearthanimal You need to indoctrinate empathy out of people in order to arrive at extreme capitalist positions. Frans de Waal empathyorderpeople Empathy as a complex emotion is different. It requires awareness of the other person's feelings and of one's own reactions. The appropriate reaction may not be to cry when another person cries, but to reassure them, or even to leave them alone. Frans de Waal empathydifferentfeelings Perhaps it's just me, but I am wary of any persons whose belief system is the only thing standing between them and repulsive behavior. Frans de Waal behaviorpersonsbelief Socialism cannot function, because its economic reward structure is contrary to human nature. Frans de Waal socialismrewardshuman-nature Most men probably wouldn't want to live the lives of bonobos. They're constantly clinging to their mothers' apron strings. They lack the ability to make decisions about their own fates, something that we and male chimpanzees practically consider our birthright. Frans de Waal fatemothermen The possibility that empathy resides in parts of the brain so ancient that we share them with rats should give pause to anyone comparing politicians with those poor, underestimated creatures. Frans de Waal empathybraingiving We, who think like animals living in small groups, must structure a global world. We believe in universal human rights and believe racism and war are wrong. On the other hand, it is our nature to be cooperative and loving almost exclusively with the members of the group to which we feel we belong. Frans de Waal animalwarbelieve We start out postulating sharp boundaries, such as between humans and apes, or between apes and monkeys, but are in fact dealing with sand castles that lose much of their structure when the sea of knowledge washes over them. They turn into hills, leveled ever more, until we are back to where evolutionary theory always leads us: a gently sloping beach. Frans de Waal apesseabeach It wasn't God who introduced us to morality; rather, it was the other way around. God was put into place to help us live the way we felt we ought to. Frans de Waal moralityhelpingway Humanity is actually much more cooperative and empathic than [it's] given credit for. Frans de Waal creditgivenhumanity To neglect the common ground with other primates, and to deny the evolutionary roots of human morality, would be like arriving at the top of a tower to declare that the rest of the building is irrelevant, that the precious concept of "tower" ought to be reserved for the summit. Frans de Waal arrivingwould-beroots It is not only visitors to the zoo who are fascinated but uneasy in the presence of chimpanzees; the same is true of scientists. The more they learn about these great apes, the deeper our identity crisis seems to become. The resemblance between humans and chimpanzees is not only external. If we look straight and deep into a chimpanzee’s eyes, an intelligent, self-assured personality looks back at us. If they are animals, what must we be? Frans de Waal eyeanimalzoos Bonobo studies started in the '70s and came to fruition in the '80s. Then in the '90s, all of a sudden, boom, they ended because of the warfare in the Congo. It was really bad for the bonobo and ironic that people with their warfare were preventing us from studying the hippies of the primate world. Frans de Waal ironichippiepeople
