Altruistic Human Nature

Whether or not our species is wired for being altruistic in nature is very difficult to determine, and I find myself thinking that while a majority of us are wired for it, like anything else, there are always exceptions. It is impossible to make a statement along the lines of all humans are essentially good nature, because as of right now, it is not proven by science, and it is hard to classify people who commit certain crimes as “altruistic.” Some religions and philosophers hold the basis that humans in nature only care about themselves, while others oppose that. For example, Dalai Lama and Buddhism hold the theory that our most basic essential human nature is compassion. Additionally, in The Bonobo and the Atheist, the author uses primates, which ae very similar to humans, to show “our lineage is marked not just by male dominance and xenophobia but also by a love of harmony and sensitivity to others." The Dalai Lama believes that people can be good outside of religion. He discusses a secular ethics, and he states, “I do not agree that ethics requires grounding in religious concepts or faith. Instead, I firmly believe that ethics can also emerge simply as a natural and rational response to our very humanity and our common human condition.” (Dalai Lama) The Dalai Lama …show more content…
The use of primates have been very crucial into helping back these theories of human nature with some experimental evidence. Unfortunately, I do believe exceptions exist, and that can be the result of many things, whether it being raised in violent conditions, a traumatic event, or just some mental disorder which all have the possibility of leading us off the path of altruism. In my mind, it seems clear that we don’t need a governing system to act morally right, and for the most part, we are wired for altruistic behavior and looking out for the well being of