From Andrew Whiteley, Consett, Durham, UK
Elle Hunt gives a positive review of Christine Webb’s book The Arrogant Ape, which aims to demolish the myth of human exceptionalism. Yet it is the case, for example, that while we hold people morally accountable for their actions, we don’t do this with other animals. This suggests that human exceptionalism may not be quite the arrogant myth it is claimed to be (15 November, p 25).
Humans are indeed evolved animals and share the needs, emotions, appetites and instincts of other creatures. Morality, however, isn’t an instinct. It is a way of understanding the nature of actions, by which we judge our instincts and whether we should follow them. Yes, humans are animals; problems arise only when we add the fatal words “nothing but”.
