our Twitter (X) feedView our Youtube channelView our Instagram feedView our Substack feedView our Spotify feed A cat doesn’t think; it just does. We could learn something from this. History and SocietyPhilosophyAnxietySocial PsychologyHuman Behavior A young girl looks out of the classroom window.
It’s the end of the day, and she’s bored. She spots a goldfinch land on the ground outside. It hops about and twitches for whatever reasons goldfinches do that, and then takes off.
It swoops and dives around the playground, as if doing it all for the girl. Oh, how she would like to fly. Humans have long looked to the animal kingdom for inspiration.
We envy their skills and talents: flight, speed, strength, sociability, and so on. Religions almost always feature animal imagery, and flags will often blazon a lion, an eagle, a wolf — something bold or heroic. And philosophers are in on the game as well.
Even in the earliest historical records, people were exploring the philosophical side of animals. What can this animal teach me? What virtues does it embody?
What can I learn about myself by studying this creature? A cat does not do philosophy, and that makes it a better philosopher than anyone else. Gray argues that for humans, philosophy acts as a kind of medicine.
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