Quote:
Originally Posted by Lord Larehip
But the truth is, you really don't know why.
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Yes, at least some of us do. I feel like I'm repeating myself from another thread now and probably many threads in the past, but morality has evolved. It is a behavioural strategy to maximize fitness. Other people are potential resources or potential competitors to us and so we have evolved emotions that motivate us to deal with others in a way that ultimately helps up our own fitness. Morality is part of human nature.
If you observe social animals like wolves or bonobo chimpanzees or dolphins, you'll see they too have rules that dictate how to behave. It may f.ex be that the alpha male is the first who gets to eat. Eating before the alpha is "rude", perhaps seen as a challenge, and provokes aggression. Our ancient ancestors would have social rules too; a more primitive version of todays human morality.
Many things flavour morality, like culture, upbringing, availability of resources and health, but what I wrote is the general jist of it. It's a huge subject and if you want to get further into it, I suggest you read up on some biology. I often recommend reading Dawkins The Selfish Gene because, even though it's not about morality, it will give you great insights into how and why such things inevitably evolve and a greater understanding of what stirs in the depths of not just human nature, but in all of life.
edit :
Sociopaths are, for some reason, underdeveloped emotionally. It might be environmental with a very strong genetic component. Either way, healthy humans are not sociopaths.