Massimo2002
Active Member
What would this person's life be like ? And would this be a morally wrong or right thing to do and if so why ?
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If someone devoted there life to hating other people what would that look like ?
- Thread starter Massimo2002
- Start date
Which kinds of persons? Just specific human persons, all human persons, or all persons which includes non-human persons*? What does it mean to devote oneself to hating all members of a particular type of persons? Is it simply a belief that then has no practical ramifications on their behavior? Or is it actual behavior that affects change within the broader world? It could look like many different things depending on the answers to these questions.
*Person - in the philosophical sense of being an agent worthy of ethical and moral consideration, which is particularly relevant given the moralizing readers are asked to do with the second question. In both animistic thought and environmental ethics the notion of "person" is not limited to "human" as non-human living things and even the land itself are often granted moral standing.
*Person - in the philosophical sense of being an agent worthy of ethical and moral consideration, which is particularly relevant given the moralizing readers are asked to do with the second question. In both animistic thought and environmental ethics the notion of "person" is not limited to "human" as non-human living things and even the land itself are often granted moral standing.
Massimo2002
Active Member
When I say person I mean an individual human. And how can a belief be hateful if someone doesn't act on it ?
Hateful beliefs are routine in the human species - that's what prejudice is. And prejudices are not always acted upon for various reasons, chief among them being the ability to act without suffering undesired consequences from one's behavior. That hateful beliefs are routine in humans is part of why human societies create social norms and laws, both of which serve to enforce restrictions on human behavior. Nevertheless, the prejudice or vendettas are still there even if action is regulated by social norms or laws. When given the opportunity to act on hateful beliefs without consequence, there will inevitably be those who act. Some will act even with the threat of consequence. Such is how things are and have been for at least as long as recorded history.
PoetPhilosopher
Veteran Member
Hard to say. They'd probably come off to others as "cold" and "anti-social", but without additional details, it's hard to say if it'd go any further than that.
Twilight Hue
Twilight, not bright nor dark, good nor bad.
Probably a good indicator this person is a psychopath who finds hate pleasurable, or someone who had an extremely traumatic experience involving a specific race or culture and can't let it go.
Perhaps many would strive to be rich so as to distance themselves from the horrid masses, and often exploiting them in the process.
In my view this person would be sad.
As for morals, i guess it depends on what the other people have done to be hated.
PureX
Veteran Member
Hatred is hard to maintain. It's exhausting. It usually ends up as a resentful loathing. But loathing other humans means loathing yourself, or disconnecting yourself from humanity. And either of these would be an unpleasant way to live.
So the answer to your query would be that such a person would appear, and be, miserable. And miserable to be around.
So the answer to your query would be that such a person would appear, and be, miserable. And miserable to be around.
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Erebus
Well-Known Member
If we're talking about particularly extreme misanthropy then there are a few possibilities. The most likely outcome is that they isolate themselves as much as they can. Odds are good that they'll become severely depressed and anxious. They also may not have the necessary support networks to help them manage.
Another possibility is that the person may be able to interact with others but avoids forming any true relationships. Outsiders may never even realise that they're talking to a misanthrope.
The least likely outcome is that the person becomes violent. The vast majority of misanthropes are pretty harmless to other people but there have been exceptions. Carl Panzram is a fairly notorious example of a serial killer who seems to have genuinely hated humans.
In terms of morality, I'd personally say that misanthropy isn't inherently immoral unless it leads you to harm others. I'll admit I'm biased here though since I have a misanthropic streak myself. I can't say I devote my life to hating people but I do have a general dislike of humans as a species.
