Analysis Of Altruism: A Gift From Evolution By Natalie Angier

A Gift from Evolution According to Natalie Angier in, ”Of Altruism, Heroism and Evolution’s Gift,” altruism is an act where an individual helps another individual, but without getting any benefit from helping the other individual. She also defines altruism as, “If not for these badges of our humanity, there would be no us, and we know it” (Angier 18). I agree with Angier definitions and examples. Without altruism individuals would not have that need to help someone out because they would not feel the will to, also how certain animals carry altruism, and what makes individuals want to be altruistic. Altruism is a special trait that some individuals have, but may not know it. For example, people might find that they will do more altruistic

I have even seen it with my own dog; she recently had two puppies. She will not let us get near it because she thinks we might take it from her, so she will bite or growl viciously to protect her pups. Angier adds a comment about a primatologist at Harvard, Dr. Richard Wrangham who uses an example of red colobus monkeys. According to Wrangham, “When they are being hunted by chimpanzees, the male monkeys are “amazingly brave”… As the biggest and strongest members of their group, they undoubtedly could escape quicker than others… Instead, the males jump to the front, confronting the chimpanzee hunters, while the mothers and offspring jump to safety” (Angier 20). In other words, Wrangham believes that the red male colobus monkeys are altruistic because they are sacrificing themselves for the all mother’s and offspring’s life. They do it to protect their families, so they can go on to

Like I’ve mentioned before, loved ones could be a huge motive. A person will do anything to protect the ones they love and care about. Some have been taught while growing up to be altruistic. They were taught to always help others and expect not to get rewarded, or basically, in other words, not to be selfish. Others may want to be altruistic because they want to carry a reputation. Reputation of being the nice guy or want to be known as the nice guy, and let’s face it, no one likes the bad guy. At the University of Minnesota, Dr. Craig Packer, a professor of evolution and ecology, is mentioned by Angier. Packer states, “In a large crowd, we know who the good guys are, and we can talk about, and ostracize, the bad ones…..People are very concerned about their reputation, and that, too, can inspire us to be good” (Angier 19). Packer is insisting that reputation is a huge deal when it comes to someone being altruistic. Going back to the movie, The Mummy Returns, Imhotep is also falling into the pit of hell. He sees Rick getting help from Evelyn, so Imhotep calls for his lover, Anuk Su Namun. Anuk Su Namun does the complete opposite of Evelyn, and runs the other way leaving him there to die because she never loved Imhotep. She just wanted to be with him for his power. Anuk Su Namun is a good example of being the bad guy. Although, if she would have helped Imhotep, we’d know that she is using the