What Is a Human Being?
1: Marcus Tullius Cicero, On Duties, IV. 11-14
11 First of all, Nature has endowed every species of living creature with the instinct of self-preservation, of avoiding what seems likely to cause injury to life or limb, and of procuring and providing everything needful for life—food, shelter, and the like. A common property of all creatures is also the reproductive instinct (the purpose of which is the propagation of the species) and also a certain amount of concern for their offspring. But the most marked difference between man and beast is this: the beast, just as far as it is moved by the senses and with very little perception of past or future, adapts itself to that alone which is present at the moment; while man—because he is endowed with reason, by which he comprehends the chain of consequences, perceives the causes of things, understands the relation of cause to effect and of effect to cause, draws analogies, and connects and associates the present and the future—easily surveys the course of his whole life and makes the necessary preparations for its conduct.
12 Nature likewise by the power of reason associates man with man in the common bonds of speech and life; she implants in him above all, I may say, a strangely tender love for his offspring. She also prompts men to meet in companies, to form public assemblies and to take part in them themselves; and she further dictates, as a consequence of this, the effort on man's part to provide a store of things that minister to his comforts and wants—and not for himself alone, but for his wife and children and the others whom he holds dear and for whom he ought to provide; and this responsibility also stimulates his courage and makes it stronger for the active duties of life.
13 Above all, the search after truth and its eager pursuit are peculiar to man. And so, when we have leisure from the demands of business cares, we are eager to see, to hear, to learn something new, and we esteem a desire to know the secrets or wonders of creation as indispensable to a happy life. Thus we come to understand that what is true, simple, and genuine appeals most strongly to a man's nature. To this passion for discovering truth there is added a hungering, as it were, for independence, so that a mind well-moulded by Nature is unwilling to be subject to anybody save one who gives rules of conduct or is a teacher of truth or who, for the general good, rules according to justice and law. From this attitude come greatness of soul and a sense of superiority to worldly conditions.
14 And it is no mean manifestation of Nature and Reason that man is the only animal that has a feeling for order, for propriety, for moderation in word and deed. And so no other animal has a sense of beauty, loveliness, harmony in the visible world; and Nature and Reason, extending the analogy of this from the world of sense to the world of spirit, find that beauty, consistency, order are far more to be maintained in thought and deed, and the same Nature and Reason are careful to do nothing in an improper or unmanly fashion, and in every thought and deed to do or think nothing capriciously. It is from these elements that is forged and fashioned that moral goodness which is the subject of this inquiry—something that, even though it be not generally ennobled, is still worthy of all honour; and by its own nature, we correctly maintain, it merits praise, even though it be praised by none.
Discussion Questions
- What does it mean that human beings can “survey the course” of their whole life? How does this shape the way we think about purpose?
- Cicero presents reason as central to human nature. Is reason the most important thing that makes human beings human? Why or why not?
- If human beings are rational, does that mean their purpose is mainly intellectual: to know, understand, and seek truth?
- Cicero says the pursuit of truth is “peculiar to man.” Do you agree that the search for truth is essential to human life?
- Cicero says nature associates “man with man” through speech and shared life. Is this true? What does this suggest about whether human beings are meant to live alone or in community?
- Why does Cicero connect human nature with family, children, public assemblies, and care for others?
- Is human purpose primarily individual, or is it fulfilled through responsibility to others?
- Cicero says concern for loved ones strengthens courage and prepares people for the “active duties of life.” How might responsibility make someone more fully human?
- Cicero says human beings alone have a sense of beauty, harmony, order, and propriety. Why might beauty and order be part of what it means to be human?
- Does Cicero’s view leave room for weakness, dependence, sickness, or disability as part of human life?
- How might clinicians, who face these parts of human life daily, keep truth and reason central? How might a focus on bodily ailments blur the pursuit of the truth? Can a physician lead a patient to reconcile the two?
- Is the human purpose something we invent for ourselves, or something built into our nature? Do those who care for the health of other humans have a different human purpose? How would Cicero respond to this claim?