Topic > The concept of being human and the philosophy behind humanism

The concept of being “human” is twisted in nature. To be human means to be distinct from animals, even though we possess many of the same characteristics. However, the aspect that allows us to separate is consciousness. Our mental capacity persists over a long period of time and gives us the unique ability to be aware of the mind itself and the world around us. Through the human mind, we are able to have multiple mental states, which inhibit us from feeling, thus developing our character. Additionally, a consciousness like ours allows us to have advanced thought processes that allow us to integrate information and make deliberate choices. We are also given the ability to have morals. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay What Makes You Human? Mental states are important to make us human because it is a component that only thinking and feeling beings can acquire. Through this feature, we are able to experiment with a variety of notions. For example, we are able to remember moments from our lives. Through remembering, as a whole, humanity is able to grow from mistakes and seek better outcomes for the overall health of society. Medicine development is a good example to prove this statement because we learn what works and what doesn't work in vaccines to increase lifespan. Furthermore, unlike many animals who act on pure instinct, humans behave based on desires that are not instinctive, which leads people to make choices. The calculated choices that humans make are a direct result of humans' unique ability to have complexity of thought. Humans particularly use this ability to evaluate a situation and then, often, create a path to help themselves or others. It can be long-term or short-term. Furthermore, it is possible to make myself and others “human” by seeing that we integrate information and analyze it. For example, Hunt examines the history of human rights and the term “evident” that revolves around human rights. His article helps demonstrate that humans can look to the past to verify what they do in the present and future. Furthermore, part of our being human is due to our conscience which gives us the ability to have morals. A human being needs to understand what he or she understands as right and wrong, whether it is what is done in society or what is done to us on a personal level. For example, De Las Casas states that “Christians have killed and destroyed so many and infinite quantities of souls,” recounts the horrific acts of war against the people of Hispaniola, San Juan, and appeals to the king to stop the abuses. Recognizes atrocities against another person. Furthermore, this example extends to another important aspect of our making ourselves human, namely taking action against injustice. Ashni and Gerber demonstrate this well in the article “Burqa: Human Right or Human Wrong?” because Muslim women who wear modest clothing such as the burqa are discriminated against. They wrote that “the Australian government has a responsibility to protect the right of Muslim women… to practice their religion.” Therefore, it is part of being human for people to stand up, speak out and write against prejudices in order to achieve positive consequences. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Overall, in my opinion, what makes us human is our state of awareness. This is unique to humans. Thanks to this,.