This article focuses on Richard Dawkins’ evolutionary theory and the concept of “memes” to argue that not only humans but also highly social animals are capable of pure altruism. By analyzing the behavior of a wide variety of creatures, it presents the idea that altruism is not a uniquely human trait.
The theory of evolution gained prominence during the time of Charles Robert Darwin. After the publication of Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, it became a central theory in biology and a powerful tool for explaining the diversity and complexity of life. Based on the concepts of natural selection and survival of the fittest, his work suggests that life has changed as it adapts to its environment. The theory of evolution is one such theory that seeks to explain how simple, single-celled organisms like amoebas emerged from complex, multicellular organisms like humans.
Darwin’s theory was initially the subject of debate and criticism, but over time, more scientific evidence has come to support his claims. Beyond simply explaining biological phenomena, evolutionary theory has also had a profound impact on philosophical discussions about the origin of life and the place of humans. One of the most prominent proponents of this line of thought is Richard Dawkins, author of The Selfish Gene, who has done a lot of research on evolutionary theory. He sought to answer the question of why organisms produce offspring and try to sustain them by providing them with unconditional love and care.
He argues that the basic unit of life is the gene and that organisms produce and care for their offspring, which are copies of their genes, in order to perpetuate the genes they carry. Behind this claim is the idea that genes are the true “agents” of life, and that organisms are merely “vehicles” that carry and protect them. I think Richard Dawkins’ argument has a lot of validity: he argues that genes are focused on replicating and perpetuating their own copies, and that life as a carrier of genes is absolutely selfish. This is in line with the principles of natural selection, and is based on the logic that selfish behavior leads to more success in an environment where all living things are competing to survive and reproduce.
This is true for the vast majority of life on Earth, and he has proven the validity of his logic in his exceptional case. He also introduces a new concept called “memes” to explain the complex social structure of humans, a species that defies his argument. A meme is a term coined by Richard Dawkins that refers to an intermediate medium such as a unit, modality, type, or element in the process of transmission and evolution of human culture, just like genes. In other words, a meme is a unit of information that is transmitted through human thought and behavior patterns, and plays an important role in the development and change of human society. In other words, within human culture, culture is transmitted from person to person in the form of memes.
I think he introduced the concept of memes to explain creatures with pure altruism. He was trying to use culture as an excuse for an example of pure altruism that defied his logic: humans. However, I think he should have observed a larger and more diverse set of organisms before introducing the concept, because I’m pretty sure humans aren’t the only ones who have the meme he introduced.
His logic doesn’t allow for altruistic behavior towards organisms that have no or very little genetic closeness to them, which is why he introduced a special concept for humans to explain it. I believe that this concept of memes should not only be applied to humans, but also to some highly social animals. If we take a closer look at highly social creatures and analyze different cases, we can see that pure altruism is not unique to humans.
For example, altruistic behavior is also observed in some primates and other animals that maintain cooperative relationships between individuals. Chimpanzees and bonobos, for example, often exhibit behaviors that provide assistance to other individuals, contributing to the maintenance and prosperity of the community beyond mere genetic benefit. Of course, people will say that the term meme can’t be applied to animals. After all, the term was coined to describe the specificities of human society, so its use is limited to humans. However, if we broaden the scope a bit, the term can be applied to the societies of other creatures.
Also, some people believe that some of the glimpses of pure altruism in animals are just coincidences. Or they may not accept that meme-like mechanisms may exist in some animal societies, attributing them to mutations within the group. However, this is likely due to a lack of awareness of the phenomenon that is being observed in some animal societies. Leaving aside the existence of pets in human societies, which I believe already falls under the category of memes, there are several phenomena that show animal altruism in nature. Altruism is not just a product of chance, but can be a strategy that can have a positive impact on survival and reproduction under certain conditions. One example of this is when dolphins rescue people. On October 30, 2004, a pod of dolphins saved a man from a great white shark in New Zealand. Another example is the dramatic rescue of a stranded refugee boat off the coast of Florida, USA, by dolphins on March 27, 2000. There are many other similar cases, and if you look at the funeral rituals of dolphins and elephants, which are often observed, they also fall into the category of human culture. They have family-like bonds, protect each other, and fulfill their responsibilities as part of a community. I think the existence of these things suggests the existence of what Richard Dawkins calls memes.
If we observe closely, even in non-human societies, we can see that there is indeed something like culture in some organisms, and that meme-like mechanisms may also exist. Thus, we can see that we are not the only organisms that have culture and pure altruism. In the end, from an evolutionary perspective, altruism and social behavior are complex phenomena that can be found in a wide variety of organisms and can be observed among many animals, including humans. Therefore, we need to broaden our horizons and analyze more creatures in more detail and detail. And we should broaden the discussion by looking for organisms to which the term meme can be applied – the genes of culture.
