What seperates us from the animals?

Question

Many people believe that the freedom of choice is what seperates us from the animals as they live off of instict, and some would say that its our emotions that seperate us from them but I say it is humor which seperates us from animals as they dont understand the puns or catch lines of jokes. They lack the critcal thinking skills needed for humor, what do you think?

Answer 1

I like your thinking!

(Also, we have a capacity for being embarrassed; they don't.)

Answer 2

Well, if you read in the Bible where God creates the whole world and galaxies and creatures, you will see that God put in man a living soul. And that in some way allows us to laugh at jokes and communicate in ways not possible to animals. So one could say that separates us from the animals. Also God created us special from the beginning. All the other parts of the universe were created by Him speaking, but man was created by God forming man out of the dust of the earth and breathing into his nostrils the breath of life. So when all the universe planets and creatures were made just by speaking, man was made with special care and attention. That, I must say, separates us from the animals.

Answer 3

It is the fact that we humans are stupid which seperates us from animals. For the sake of 'development', we have seperated ourselves from animals. Our "critical thinking skills" have led to the destruction of nature, and the mind itself. Animals with their primitive thoughts live perfectly happy lives. While we continuously think of new ways to destroy ourselves as well as the animals.
Yeah.. We are very intelligent because we can understand jokes and puns, aren't we?

Answer 4

I think it would be freedom of choice. I think some animals do feel emotion. I have never heard the humor one but i don't think that would be the only thing to separate us.

Answer 5

agreed, our sense of humor sets us apart,

The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter.
—Mark Twain

Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps; for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are, and what they ought to be.
—William Hazlitt


some more human humor...

Humans are the only animals that have children on purpose with the exception of guppies, who like to eat theirs.
—P. J. O'Rourke

Human beings are the only creatures that allow their children to come back home.
—Bill Cosby

The ability to make love frivolously is the chief characteristic which distinguishes human beings from beasts.
—Heywood Broun
quoted in George S. Kaufman, 1973

Answer 6

The thing that separates humans from the animal kingdom is deductive reasoning. I say this because animals have emotions, that is all primal instinct is, pure unbuffered emotion. they also have a sense of humor, gorillas laugh, etc.

Answer 7

The ability to reason with people seperates us from the animals
have you ever read the short story "The Most Dangerous Game" it is a very good story you should read it.

Answer 8

It's the opposable thumb. That's it.
Gorillas have humor. And sadness. They teach them sign language at some zoos and those animals can tell you that something is funny, that something makes them sad. So- the only thing left is the opposable thumb.

Answer 9

the ability to think about the future and to imagine different possibilities seperate us from animals. the ability to believe in a god, to daydream, to have dilemmas and such are all human qualities. animals are all learned and innate behaviors and instinct. we have those abilities, but more. so i guess in a way we could become animals if we chose to. but animals cannot choose to be human.

Answer 10

At the most basic level, it is self awareness and the ability to speculate on the future (i.e.anticipate mortality) that separates us. A squirrel doesn't know he's a squirrel and that some day he will die. We do.

Answer 11

I would have to disagree with those who say animals dont resaon, but what seperates us fromthe animal are our legs, brain compacity and the fact were Human, humans cant be animals, but we do need to care for them as though they to are humans, animals have god, they jsut dont have to try as hard to please him. We ate the fruit, not them, and we were given the worries of the gods (Gen. 1:1- 4;1, I think)