Cogito Ergo Sum

A detailed Summary of Cogito Ergo Sum

"Then the Lord God formed man of the dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being" (Genesis 2:7).

The Bible states the above as the moment man became a being, and from this being civilization was created. To a believer, this would answer the question of what a human is. However, as science has progressed and more abstract ideology has fallen upon the human race, this question has come to have many answers. I feel that the definition of the term human can be correct in many different ways. As a scientific definition one could say a human is a bipedal homo sapien sapien with a spine that attached to the bottom of the skull. As a Theologist a human is all the trials and tribulations that we read about in the Bible. To me both of these definitions are true, but the challenge is finding one definition that spans across all ideology. After much thought and distress I have concluded that to be human, to be a person, is merely to exist. I agree with the statement "cogito ergo sum," or I think therefore I am. If all you can prove without doubt is that, to exist is to thin!

k, then that is our definition. In this paper I will explain and analyze Gr

Fifth we see that Gregersen writes that humans can be classified as animals that strive to be a part of a society or a colony. He explains that humans have acted upon their need for colonization as survival and acceptance of "public roles" (9). This is true, humans have sought out other humans and colonized for protection and survival, yet as in the aforementioned we are not alone in the practice. Ants, for example, have acted upon these same instincts and formed massive colonies and serve public roles. They too have separate jobs and duties for different ants, which all help preserve the colony as a whole. On these grounds I am forced to say that this is a poor trait to include in the definition of humans.

Gregersen's second point is also based heavily on the readings of Cicero. He writes, that to be human is to be "a rational being" (8) and exercise judgment in decision making opportunities. An example of this is our common choice between right and wrong. Daily we all make split second decisions regarding right versus wrong and it is most definitely a characteristic we possess as humans, however this is not a distinction we can hold alone. If you look at a trained dog, they have learned that eliminating indoors is not an acceptable behavior. In the same way humans are brought up and taught right from wrong, dogs and other animals can be taught as well. Therefore this reason is not specific enough to be included in our definition of the human.

Next, Gregersen explains that humans can be classified by our ability to possess different identities and unique character. It is true that each human has a different role in society and has a unique character; however we are not alone in this practice. The clearest evidence against this can be found in any pack animal. Within a pack of animals, regardless of species there is an alpha male or female.

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Approximate Word count = 1263
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Religion