Hey all, I appreciate that this sub exists and hopefully I can find some answers to a question i’ve been thinking about lately.
*Apologies in advance for my naïveté.
I recently found myself in an argument/debate with some friends about the current wars happening in the world and I took the stance of the idealist, “well if me and you aren’t shooting at each other then so can others, right?”
And so this turned into a long drawn out debate about “..well it’s human nature for wars and fights to happen.. and people will justify killing others”.
I’m not specifically trying to get at “why wars happen” but more so the psychology of violence and aggression that humans innately may have. Further, is it entirely possible to be civilized?
Thank you!
by fookuda
7 Comments
Not entirely sure if it’s exactly what you’re looking for, but I’d still really recommend Man’s Search for Meaning by Frankel.
Describes the life inside of a concentration camp and what is really left of of as humans when pretty much everything is stripped away from us.
The laws of human nature by Robert Greene
Human Kind by Rutgar Bergman
Siddartha by Herman Hesse for a wider perspective of human nature.
Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors by Carl Sagan.
*The True Believer* by Eric Hoffer.
*Humankind* by Rutgar Bergman and *A Paradise Built in Hell* by Rebecca Solnit are two well-written, approachable books that argue that humans are, in fact, helpful and cooperative by nature.