Man was happier before he became man, developed a conscience, obtained the knowledge of good and evil, ate the fruit, or however you want to put it.After the "fall", he knows that he constantly choses what goes against his conscience, and he is aware that he can never truly be good. He has to live knowing deep down that he isn't good.This is why I believe Schopenhauer is right when he says creatures more intelligent than man would have abolished themselves already, unless such creatures were utter sociopaths.
>>18021393To expand on that point: Man is as intelligent as a being with a conscience can get without its conscience literally killing it.
>>18021393Man lacked object permanence. He was happier followed by a state of abject terror when reality didn't align with his primitive reckoning of animal strength. Followed by happiness again. This type of existence has the advantage of being seemingly infinite: one day is no nearer the beginning or end than any other. However, the argument in favor of monkey is teetering on its weak justification, the idea of happy-er and MORE intelligent humanities. Such simplistic comparisons invite an equally bland utilitarian rebuttal, viz., there are 1 million times as many feeling, thinking people as there were back then. Aside the tautology of a race too smart to exist, there's no argument which could privilege the past on quantity and therefore overall quality of happiness.
This doesn’t mean humans are worse in a moral sense, just that consciousness increases psychological suffering.
>>18021515your itty bitty nerve endings have never felt a toothache that would compare to one of my erections. sensation must increase.
>>18021515Man is morally worse because he knows that he is bad, monky doesn't.
>>18021393Schopenhauer has never lived in a tree, so he has no clue. Living in the jungle means fighting for your life daily.
>>18021393Perhaps. But happiness is a misleading goal. It's like aiming for cuisine to be sweet. Sweets have their place, but it's not what makes a good cuisine.
>>18022247So what would you prefer?
>>18021393I don't agree since I can't fucking swing on trees or even climb one. Thank natural selection and civilization for getting us out of that hell.
>>18023326A well-balanced couple of courses.
this is just a demoralation thread lmao
