Everyone knows someone that can make his or her sunny day turn into a rainy, gloomy day. Or maybe someone has had an encounter with a person on the subway that bumped into you, knocked your bags down and still didn't have the audacity to say excuse me or can I help you with that? What comes to mind when you have to deal with these types of people? Do you just assume that maybe that individual is just having a bad day, or do you think that there are just no decent human beings on this universe? In a very busy, selfish, and impersonal cities like New York City, the afore mentioned scenario usually occurs everyday. It is the New York culture, a fast pace environment with no excuses or apologies. It makes you question "Are we naturally good? And if not, whence does human goodness come?"(de Waal 658). Some may view that there are no nice and caring people. They may think that everyone is born without a kind bone in their body. And that arrogant person that ran into you in the subway may make you want to agree. In the excerpts from The Ape and the Sushi Master, de Waal uses the similar views of Westermarck and Mencius, to counterpoint the theories of Hobbes and Huxley. Whereas Mencius and Westermarck think that humans are born with morality and natural kindness, Hobbes and Huxley view humans as selfish and nasty. I agree with the idea shared between Westermarck and Mencius, that humans are naturally kind. However, due to the division of cultures, religions, and races, there is a separation in major societies, like New York City. This separation causes people to not feel comfortable enough to show such kindness. There are certain events that may occur in which people are unified, allowing them to be able to share similar experiences. These shared experiences eventually lead everyone to feel more comfortable and kinder to one another and show that humans, by nature, are generally nice and compassionate.
