Butterfly question 2

Esther Cornelius JayAndEstherC at webtv.net
Mon May 31 03:21:23 EDT 1999


Sallie:
Concerning butterfly play: Since I'm human (usually), I can, with
authority,  claim validity for my opinnions on other creatures emotions
(or lack of them). There seems to be no base line for any call on this
issue, humans are good at theorizing, what with the extra crainial
capacity & all, but those who believe that "detached" reason is the
complete control of sensory input, are also feeding their brains "feel
good" receptors, which is an emotional response too, unlike that of
butterflies who are completely unencumbered with any reason yet they
survive SOMEHOW. Dr Scotts book (Butterflies of North America) is
excellent, but calling butterfly's social action "agnostic" seems to
trivialize their involvement in the world, ie. they don't know what
they're doing: So what, who does? People emotions and butterfly play
both amount to hormone responses to a social context and make good sense
as a survival trait. If we assume that arthropods socioty (lacking a
family up-bringing) includes other creatures as a substitute and that
they ARTHropomorphize us with at least as much compassion, and one can
see why we all make such good food, it's only polite.
Bill Cornelius


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