certainly, the species who have learned to cooperate and work together for a common goal, rather than having an "every man for himself" mentality have survived best. this is obvious all throughout the animal kingdom. could you imagine any species surviving very long on the idea of kill or be killed?
2007-11-21 02:20:01 · 9 answers · asked by just curious (A.A.A.A.) 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
This is not to agree or disagree. I find this to be an intriguing question. It actually gave me cause to think. I appreciate things like that. This is something I have never before considered or contemplated. Thanks so much for the opportunity to explore something new (to me). I cannot wait to share this with friends and family. It will make for interesting conversation. Sorry if I go off topic... I am just brainstorming (I acknowledge that one man's brainstorms are another man's scattered brain showers). Now onto my random thoughts on the subject...
Morality is conditional based on acceptable social norms. In this way, I suppose it would be accurate to say that morality is a thing that evolves. Even the Catholic church modifies its "rules" to fit in with current "trends."
There are things that were considered "moral" 1,000 years ago that are now considered to be "inhumane" and otherwise "unjustifiable."
Morality is typically based on a set of religious beliefs. Morality differs from one nation to another... from one religion to another... from one sect to another. I wonder if there were such a thing as "morality" before the advent of "god(s)."
Morality is a human invention. It is a means of control. In this manner of thinking, morality is not an evolutionary "trait" so much as a byproduct of evolution.
On a side note, it seems to me that society is in fact becoming more "every man for himself" minded with each passing day. I do not see the same community spirit today that I did 30 years ago. Then again, maybe I'm just blind.
Thanks again... I will be exploring this for some time to come.
2007-11-21 03:06:09 · answer #1 · answered by Trina™ 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ok, I can see where you are coming from. Social creatures have a better chance of survival. They can defend themselves better, find food more efficiently, and take care of their young better. The idea that a group of creatures evolving to become more social is not a radical idea. As the social animals evolve, the rules of the group will evolve. The rules will evolve in a way that benefits the social group. Killing will not be tolerated, stealing mates will not be tolerated, stealing food will not be tolerated, and so on and so forth. As the social creatures evolve to a point where they have greater intelligence, the rules will evolve as well. They will become more complex because the creatures have become more complex. I can see that morality can be an evolutional trait.
2007-11-21 10:28:21 · answer #2 · answered by A.Mercer 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Survival of the fittest would certainly guarantee a strong linage and it would also serve to keep the population under control. But aside from that, you wouldn't likely see any sort of technological advances or communities develop.
As for the broader term of morality, bear in mind that social standards... what is and is not moral, are products of people who are just as fallable and imperfect as the rest of us. They are gray laws that have no basis in absolute instinctive right and wrong.
2007-11-21 10:26:43 · answer #3 · answered by sincityq 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
yes, it is. I keep telling people to read books about sociobiology if they doubt it, but apparently very few people ever do.
There are plenty of studies showing that social animals can't do whatever they like. If they cheat they will get punished by the other members of the group. There are plenty of studies about this even in insects.
2007-11-21 10:27:15 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Exactly.
Charles Darwin said that, given enough time, other species would likely develop moralities comparable to our own.
2007-11-21 10:26:39 · answer #5 · answered by Nowhere Man 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
CERTAINLY MORALITY HAS EVOLVED ESPECIALLY AMONGST HUMANS--it used to be moral to burn a person or hang a person--certainly we have evolved towards a much more civil way of doing things in general
2007-11-21 13:15:13 · answer #6 · answered by slopoke6968 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
God gave us His Moral law into our hearts. We can choose not to honor God with our free will, but He equipped us with the sense of what is right and what is wrong.
2007-11-21 11:40:56 · answer #7 · answered by Nina, BaC 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
yes
which is why it's so subjective
2007-11-21 15:06:47 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
GOD IS THE TRUTH AND THE ONLY TRUTH
2007-11-21 10:22:40 · answer #9 · answered by GOD IS LOVE 3 · 0⤊ 13⤋