Blog 17: Second Source

I just read an article titled, "Life in the Pack: Of Dogfights ans Social Moralities" by Bryan Zepp Jamieson, which is about how both humans and animals act civally towards one another. He makes the arguement that a common saying such as humans are "above the beast of the fields" is incorrect and gives the example that when one of his dogs was sick, his two cats and the other dog in his household kept the dog comay and groomed him to comfort him. He then says that humans do the same thing and that when another person is sick even those who are not as civil when addressing this person are suddenly respectful and semi-concerned due to our morals. These small but utterly selfless acts suggest kindness and compassoin- behavior that in humans would be considered moral. Then he mentions the case that two wolves that fight for a mate must still hunt together for food if they are to eat, they cannot live without each other. The writer then makes the interesting point that any mamal can form a bond with any other animal such as a Gorilla taking care of a kitten or a pride of lions adopting a goat. This behavior would be seen as moral especially due to the kindness that could be seen behind the action. These actions of reaching out from animals shows that animals are capable of kindness as well and helps to disprove Social Darwinism. This article could possibly be used to show that animals also show family like traits within their packs or herds based on actions such as these.