What does civilised mean?
I have often pondered on this question — are humans are indeed civilized? One definition of civilized — an adjective that describes the very opposite of barbarity. A civilised person is polite and courteous; he knows how to say “please” and “thank you.” This seems such a shallow definition. Here is another — a civilized group of people is characterized by being socially and technologically advanced. So I wondered considered what “socially advanced” means. Is it a level of intelligence needed in order for society to function cohesively albeit, peaceably, as a unit. So intelligence is a given?
Margaret Mead’s definition of civilized
Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones. But no. Mead said that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a femur (thighbone) that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You are meat for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough for the bone to heal. A broken femur that has healed is evidence that someone has taken time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts, Mead said. So are we civilized now? When there is an accident, what do most people do? Take out their mobile phones, snap pictures and post them on social media. Are we just a bunch of sickos with smart phones? And how about cyber bullying. A fellow Fijian took his own life last week because of it. Heck, most animals are more caring than us.
The three sieves
Here is another example of our shocking lack of civilization. Socrates had a great reputation for wisdom. One day, someone asked him, “Do you know what I just heard about your friend?” Socrates said, “Before you tell me, I would like to test it with the three sieves.” What are the three sieves?” the person asked. Socrates said. “Before you speak about others, it’s important to take the time to filter what you mean. I call it the test of the three sieves. The first sieve is truth. Have you checked if what you’re going to tell me is true?” The person said, “No, I just heard it.” “Very well! So, you don’t know if it’s true. Let’s move on to the second sieve, that of KINDNESS. Is what you want to tell me about my friend something good?” “No! On the contrary, “said the person Socrates said, “So you want to tell me something negative about him, and you’re not even sure it’s true? Perhaps you can still pass the test of the third sieve, that of UTILITY. Is it useful for me to know what you’re going to tell me about this friend?” “No not really,.” said the person “Therefore,” concluded Socrates, “what you were going to tell me is neither true, nor good, nor useful. Why, then, did you want to tell me this?” And yet, don’t most of us do this? We post garbage with great relish (and mustard too) without scant regard for how it will hurt the person we are gossiping about.
Lesson from a pigeon
Here is something I read on Quora. A nurse took a photo of a pigeon sitting on a patient’s bed and put a note with the photo. The note said, it has been 23 days since this patient came to the hospital and no one from his family came to visit him. But there is a pigeon that comes every two days, stays there for a while, then flies away. Then we learned that this patient of ours was sitting on a park bench next to the hospital and feeding the pigeons there every day. This must be another proof that animals have better hearts than humans.
A scary world
All we need to do is to watch the world news to see how evil the world is– the war that Russia is waging against Ukraine, the civil unrest in Bolivia, the heartless bombing of Gaza by the Israelis. Last week, North Korea executed 30 middle school students for watching South Korean dramas.
Fiji – a decadent society
How about the high incidence of domestic violence in our own paradise? We have the dubious distinction of having one of the highest gender based violence in the world. Isn’t it ironical that we are promoted as the friendliest people in the whole world? Also, there is so much incest – just last week a father had sex with his daughter. Is there no limit to how low we can go?
The naiveté of Hamlet
Hamlet is so naïve in his praise for humans. He says, “What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculty! In form and moving how express and admirable! In action how like an angel! In apprehension how like a god! The beauty of the world! The paragon of animals!” How ironic! We may be born with the right inclinations but lack the character to follow those inclinations. Au contraire, Mark Twain was more astute than Hamlet, He said, The more I learn about people, the better I like my dog.”
Are atheists more civilized?
Atheists are asked by believers, “If you don’t believe in God, there’s nothing to prevent you from committing crimes, is there?” It is hard to believe that people could hold such an opinion. It seems never to have occurred to them that the Greeks and Romans, whose gods and goddesses were not so virtuous, led decent lives. Pagans such as Aristotle and Marcus Aurelius wrote ethical pieces which are rarely, if ever, equaled by religious moralists. The answer to the questions posed above is “Not really!” I think really atheists are more civilized as they do good not from the fear of going to Hell but because they just happen to be good people. But history tells us that civilized nations commit atrocities against each other all the time over resources, territories and protection. I think humanity has the capacity to be cruel or be kind when the occasion suits. We are civilized to a point. And it isn’t in our nature to always be in that state of existence.
- ARVIND MANI is a former teacher who is passionate about quality education. He lived in the US for 35 years and was actively involved in training youths to improve their speaking skills. The views expressed are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the views of this newspaper. He can be reached at theinspiredteacher9@gmail.com
