Definition of Human

When we hear the word “human” we visualized our self and think of every human as having the power to communicate with each other, having the power to be able to take good decisions and able to make changes in the world and knowing to decide what is wrong and what is good to themselves as well as for the other beings too. When hear the word “animals “we immediately think of having four legs, tail and a horn. In the article “Revisiting the definition of homo sapiens” according to Talmud, “human are those who are born from human and they have the potential ability to produce offspring and have the potential to express their moral intelligence at the higher rate than the other animals” (Loike and Tendler 345) .These are the three main characters that differentiate and group human from other living creature. Of all these three I think the most essential and the vital role can be played by being born from human. Since it is impossible that an animal can be born from human and a human can be born from animal. Humans can be defined by the quality they have such as being born within human, having the ability to produce offspring and then having the moral intelligence. These are the crucial criterion as there are many creatures on the earth which give birth to offspring and they are born within but they lack the criterion of having moral intelligence.

To be named and called as human one has to be born of human and formed from human. “A living organism is human if it was formed within, or was born from a human being” (Loike and Tendler 346). This is important because no other than human can be born from human. Only the humans will have the ability to be born be born from human. Other animals are not born of humans. This is the most important criterion that classifies human and animal. There are animals that are new born to this world but they are not born from human, they are born from their own and same species like an elephant can be born from elephant only. There is no species that can give birth to different species. This is the most special characters in all living beings.

In the article “Ethical Issues: From Person hood to viability” Pence has stated that although a fetus is a human, it doesn’t meet certain criteria of person hood, since a fetus is not a person, it does not have a right to life (1). From my point of view, what I think is fetus is still a human since they are born of human, and this is the one absolute and ultimate requirement according to the article “Revisiting the definition of homo sapiens” by Loike and Tendler state that human must at least possess one of the three mentioned characters and the fetus does possess one. So the fetus should have right to their life. The most important character is that human should be born within or from human to be called as human. So most importantly after a fetus is born, they will develop their moral intelligence which is the other requirement to be defined as human. In addition “a child formed via in vitro fertilization and gestated completely in an artificial incubator would be classified as a human being” (Loike and Tendler 346). This is a different case though a child is not born inside the human body, they are to be considered as human because as they grow up they will develop the moral intelligence and further they will have the potential to produce offspring.

For instance, when I was two years old I am not morally intelligent as my brains are not fully developed and mature. But as time passes by the brain tend to develop and the moral intelligence increase and I know what is right to do and what is not right to do. This doesn’t mean that when I am young I am not considered as human. I am considered as human most importantly because I am born form a human and I will possess all the characters that a human has. As I grow up my brain will develop and understanding power increases. In case with the fetus they will also possess the moral intelligence as they came into this world and let them grow up in the way they wanted.

Human should possess moral intelligence and understanding and should be able to make right decision in their lives. “Several Talmudic scholars affirm that the capacity to differentiate between good and evil (or right or wrong) is a critical feature that distinguishes human features that distinguishes human form all other living creatures” ( Loike and Tendler 346). Human need moral intelligence for the way they think, behave and feel. They have the unique characteristics due to moral intelligence. They have the aptitude to talk, communicate with each other via language and they are many ways a human can communicate with each other whereas animals they do not. Human can communicate through facial expression, verbal, and sign languages whereas animals they have only sign language to express their feeling to each other. But there are exceptions that some animals communicate and have their own language but the language they use to communicate is unrecognizable and uncommon to others.

But there are some animals like chimp and monkeys so called our ancestors who are intelligent. “To be a person is to have the unique genes of a specific human being” (Pence 2). The genes that animal have is different from human however they are morally intelligent. They will not be able to implement their intelligence like human can implement it. For instance an animal like monkey or chimp injected with human DNA or that express human genes and without exhibiting moral intelligence, a monkey will be still be not considered as human as they do not posses any criterion of human being. “Talmud rejects a purely morphological definition of Homo sapiens based upon internal and external structure and appearance of an organism. Therefore animal that looked human but was not formed within or born from a human and did not possess moral intelligence could not be classified as a human being” (Loike and Tendler 349). As mentioned in the article Talmud proposes that the birth of mother is a major element in defining the species of an animal. However “a transgenic living organism may be classified as human even if it were not born form a human provided that it possessed moral intelligence ( or the ability to reproduce with human) “(Loike and Tendler 348). Same with the machine made human with moral intelligence; though they were not basically born from human but at least they possess one of the human criterion where human should be fitted and therefore equal rights and freedom should be given to them as well. But then there is still some exceptional with those who are disabled or abnormal since they are born from human can be still considered as human. This is because since they are born from human and they are fulfilling at least one criterion to be human.

Human should be able to produce offspring with a human. The aptitude to produce offspring is within all the spices. Talmud one of the earliest works to recognize this genetic characteristic of Homo sapiens, stating that human beings cannot mate with any other species to produce offspring (Loike and Tendler 347). Human are only the ones those who can mate within themselves and produce offspring unlike animals can mate with other species. As mentioned in both the bible and Talmud document that certain other species of animal s and plants can cross breed to produce viable offspring (Loike and Tendler 347). This is the most unique and vital character human possess in producing offspring. As a result the offspring produced will be human and will possess the same character the parents have unlike those cross breed offspring.

There are three absolute requirements to be fitted into the category of human. To be named and called as human one has to be born of humans, should possess moral intelligence and should be able to produce offspring with human. The above mentioned are important characters to be defined as human and anyone with one of those above characters can be accepted as human and therefore they should be called and named as human.

Works cited : Pence Gregory E. “Ethical Issues: From Personhood to Viability.” Classical Cases in Medical Ethics: Accounts of Cases that Have Shaped Medical Ethics, with Philosophical, Legal and Historical Backgrounds. New York: McGrew Hill Higher Education, 2004.135-138.Print.
Loike, John. “Revisiting the Definition of Homo Sapiens.” Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal. Volume 12. Number 4. December 2002.343-350.Print.
Allchin, Douglas. “Monster and the Tyranny of Normality. “How does biologist interpret anomalous form? The American biology teacher. Volume 70. November 2. February,2008. Print.

Thank you
Enjoy Reading .
K Z