In your opinion does high self-preservation equate to cowardice?

Question

OK I know that all humans are programmed with self-preservation forefornt in their minds, but what I want to know is, in your opinion, does this equate with cowardice.

For instance; you are walking home and see someone being mugged in an alleyway- your self-preservation kicks in and you walk away (calling the cops from a safe distance) rather than wading in and dealing out the beats...does this make you a coward?

Likewise a soldier during battle...if the soldier runs instead of fighting this obviously means they have high self-preservation...but does this define them as a coward?

Thanks for you answers!

PS, let's not be having any bitching here please!

Answer 1

Yes, its just a positive and a negative view on the same thing

Answer 2

Having a high self preservation level doesn't make you a coward. I don't believe the two a preclusive. A person with a high level of self preservation wouldn't put themselves into a situation where they are likely to be killed, like a soldier. I also think that calling the police without wading into a mugging is a sensible idea, as you can be sued for damages y the mugger if you hurt them, or even the person being mugged (if a woman can sue McDonalds for damages done by a cup of coffee which she had bought and spilt herself then I can believe anything of the legal system)

Answer 3

No I don't think that self-preservation means you are a coward. That is like saying a guy who has been in prison 2 times and is in fear of getting the 3 strike law put on him, is a coward because he won't kill the guy that just disrespected his wife. That is not being a coward that is good judgment. We all have the instinct to survive. It is only human. People who go above and beyond the law are sometimes looked at as heroes..."Oh that was such a heroic act" but really how many times have you and the fellas been sitting around and seen some horrific feat of bravery on the telli, and said... That couldn't have been me man, I would have had to let the whole family go down, because i would have trampled everyone of ya to get out of there . That guy is a complete idiot." You all know what I am talking about. Right? OK that answers your question.

Answer 4

I think your examples are unfortunate because they focus on too narrow a defination of self-preservation and therefore detract from what is a thought provoking question. The examples you have given are in special categories. In the first instance, confronting a mugger in an alleyway is not an everyday situation. Most people would not regard it as cowardly to wade in and defend the victim, most people would regard that as foolish. Secondly a soldier in a battle is a situation where we s/he contracted not to be cowardly, so running away probably would be regarded as cowardly by most people. But what about the ordinary day to day situations where self-preservation and cowardliness often battle side by side. The situation where your boss says something you don't agree with, where you decide not to go to a party because you don't know enough people, where you put off calling someone because it is a difficult situation - in these situations, my answer would be "yes" self-preservation does equate to cowardliness.

Answer 5

I don't believe that self-preservation is equal to cowardice. It is, as you suggested, hard-wired into us in order to preserve the species.

I would think that interfering in a mugging could put you at a high level of risk, and no one could fault you for avoiding the situation. I think that it would be unreasonable to take on that risk without mitigating factors.

The battle scenario is a little trickier. Soldiers are trained to fight. But they are not trained to needlessly sacrifice themselves. So I believe that if the situation is dire, running away is the only sensible alternative. If running away put others in more danger than if the soldier stayed, there could be an argument for cowardice and the military has methods of determining that.

He who fights and runs away lives to fight another day.

Answer 6

I hate to be wishy-washy about this, but I really think this is a case by case basis type of deal. In the first example, I don't see it as cowardice, because calling the police (who are better equipped to handle the situation) amounts to doing something. Just because you don't fly off the handle and run in like Jackie Chan determined to ward off evil single-handedly doesn't mean you're a coward. But I would say if you avoid the situation and ignore it altogether, it is certainly selfishness, if not cowardice. So bottom line, I guess my answer is "Not necessarily." Awesome question.

Answer 7

All people will do one of two things fight or run setting this up you said a soldier ran away while others stayed to fight dos not make him a coward but he has filled his mind with facts of the fight an sees he can not win he simply leaves.
The alley thing is brains not fear you know not any one in the alley who would you help man a or man b

Answer 8

Well-what is the word coward, anyway? To me, the very use of the word coward displays a coward using the word (I don't mean you.)

It is like young kids saying "chicken!" while trying to coerce someone to do somehing they don't want to do. The word coward is a judgemental word, implying a person has no integrity.

Let each person self-preserve themselves according to their own rules, and let the rest of us look at the large branch in our own eyes instead of the small stick in theirs.

Answer 9

yes. i was racially abused by a police officer and i broke his nose and ran off before his partner realised what was happening. when i got home and told my mother, she was like the police have guns and all this kind of crap and started crying and telling me how hard she had to work to bring me up. i told her that it was exactly because of that that you can't let them push you up against the wall for no reason, and when they ask you why they say because you're asian. so i agree with what you're saying, because in my personal experience, if you don't act against injustice to save your life then you're something worse than a coward.

Answer 10

Self respect, self preservation, dignity and iq goes together. In the cases you cited it may means using your brain and not losing it without preserving it. I aggree to this definition.
Otherwise introvertic, greed, selfishness etc will not pass as self preservation. Thanks.