The whole and the parts

The validity of the rule that in general the interest of the whole go for that of the parts is so obvious, that it is more or less a shame on our time that it has to be explained. Almost any animal acts upon it some time or another, and most of them more of the time than not. Most visible is this in all animals that live in groups, from bacteria the primates. It is quite certain that our social behavior is in many fundamental aspects quit similar to that of primates like the chimpanzee and the bonobo, as research has proven.

The research on primates has shown that they compete, and have rows, is such a complicated fashion that it is compared to politics as men knows it. However, these rows are intermissions in a normal live that consists of cooperation. And as soon as the group as a whole is involved in some process, it is the group that works as a whole, i.e. the individual interest is put lower than that of the group. Most obvious is this when there is some external danger. But also in the process of food collection, the rules of the group are more important than that of the individual: one collects, hunts, processes food collectively. And one teaches each other and the offspring the methods of doing this.

The human who profess the primacy of individuality, are living lives that on 99 percent of the time depends on the cooperation of others, and in many cases this cooperation is not in the primal first interest of the individual. In other terms: live is where you a lot of things you do not like, in order to be able to do some things you do like. Those who profess the primacy of the individual are those that want to lead lives where they only can do things they like. Of course we know what kind of people can do the latter: the rich people.

So it should be no surprise to find that proponents of individuality are almost the same as the group of the rich and mighty, and their cohorts in the rest of society and politics. The shame of our time is that the latter group has grown so much, that the primacy of individuality has come to be seen as something natural. In fact, it is the major psychopathological illness of our time.
 

Go to Sociology list here , all articles here , site home here .