In 2004 Keith Stanovich wrote a book called The Robot's Rebellion. For years I've been thinking about the ways in which we are enslaved by our genes and what we can do to break free, and when I read this book it reinforced and clarified a lot of my thinking. An excerpt has been posted online at the URL below. This is not for the faint of heart or the fragile of ego, but if you want to gain some control over your life and are prepared to accept the fact that you probably don't have as much control now as you think you do, you might want to check it out.
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/770893.html
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/770893.html
2 Comments:
Definitely eye-opening. Interesting that we are considered to be mere 'vehicles' for our genes to replicate. However, are we actually controlled by these genes? What if the vehicle disobeys and decides not to procreate? Will it get punished by its own genes? Or, are the genes unaware of their vehicles?
I'd be interested in reading more from that book.
By 95%Unconscious, at 6:40 PM
Thanks for the comments. As you point out, genes only partially control people, as evidenced by the fact that some people choose not to have children. (However, our genes primarily encourage us to have children by enjoying sex, and although we have outsmarted our genes by finding a way to have sex without having children, the genes are still controlling us in our desire to have sex). Of course, genes do a lot more than just encourage childbearing; nearly every aspect of our behavior has at least some genetic component. My opinion is that we're vehicles for our genes (and to a lesser extent, our memes) by default, but that consciousness gives us an escape route to at least partial freedom.
By howtolive.org, at 8:00 AM
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