The Beauty of Choice

“They are in you and in me; they created us, body and mind; and their preservation is the ultimate rationale for our existence. They have come a long way those replicators. Now they go by the name of genes, and we are their survival machines. ” Pg.20

Philosophers exist on earth to answer two main questions: Why are we living? What is our purpose on earth? Richard Dawkins’ The Selfish Gene manages to answer both those questions in just one chapter. Obviously it must be acknowledged that the answers to these questions may vary depending on the way they are studied. In this book’s particular case, they are examined from a scientific point of view, which is exponentially easier to figure out. According to Dawkins we are here solely because the replicators, commonly known as genes, need survival machines. Our purpose is to carry said genes through our life time and pass them on before dying, in order for them to continue living.

This point of view on the meaning of existence seems unsatisfying, especially when philosophers have tried to find a deeper meaning since ancient Greek times. Many will argue that this cannot be the meaning of life, that humans are not guided only by their genes. I counter those thoughts with the knowledge that everything comes from our genes. Even the feeling many say is achieved through anything but biology: love.

Genes cause the first step towards love, the carnal attraction that comes with the animal inside every human being. Without this burst of attraction, love would be impossible because there would be no need to satisfy. Humans and animals alike thrive on survival. Dawkins explains this through the idea of competition. The earth’s size is finite, and thus every species must fight for their piece of land, this is, after all, what we are designed to do. Genes are meant to survive, that is the reason life has appeared on earth, the genes’ need to maintain itself alive is the drive of every species.  Humans or any animal for that matter, don´t do anything without a need to quench.

Why are humans different to animals then? Simple: we have more needs, and through time we have learned to exploit them. Curiosity is the main need that affects our separation from other animal species.

How does this prove the previous point on love? Genes spur the need humans have for love in the form of physical attraction, having this need is the first step towards a relationship and thus appears love. So it is safe to say that genes actually do create love. They create everything inside us.

The idea of the “Selfish Gene” is interesting and most likely correct, if it wasn’t so the human race would be extinct. The proof of this gene is clearly traced through years of human’s taking over the world without blinking. The only thing that is exempt from our genes in our train of thought, which in turn gives us the single most important ability a man has: the ability to choose.