What Does It Mean To Be Human? (Entry 6)

We can eat, drink, sleep, dance, sing, cry, laugh, walk, run, write, read, speak, and many more. On the other hand, we can also murder, kill, judge, criticize, ostracize, rape, bully, discriminate, etc. The list goes on with the limitless possibilities we can do. But the question is: What does it mean to be HUMAN? Can one stop being human while still being alive?

To answer this, we must first answer the question what is it to be human? To be human is to have the ability to communicate with one another. It is also being able to understand abstract ideas that require the use of logic and reasoning. And lastly, our capacity to feel, portray and express our emotions is a distinct characteristic that only humans like us are capable of doing. All those things I mentioned are things that set us apart from other species. 

If that's our very definition of what it means to be human, then I believe that yes, it is also possible to stop being human while still being alive. This can be seen in Gregor Samsa's Metamorphosis. When he turned into a verminous bug, he lost the ability to speak. However, he was still capable of communicating through his movements. At the same time, he was still thinking aloud although his thoughts could not be heard. And he could still feel. On the other hand, since he can no longer work, and provide for the family... he was seen as useless. In fact, he was a burden for them. These people stopped caring about him. They grew tired of him. The man whom they once loved, was literally treated as an insect. It was as if they were just waiting for him to die until he did.

In that story, we can ask ourselves who among them was truly human? Was it Gregor's family who abandoned him and killed his hope little by little or was it Gregor who, despite being a bug, was still able to share his thoughts and feelings to those who could hear his silent words?

To be human, is to be selfless. In being selfless, we are able to feel and understand others. Given that we do, we do not just stop there but instead, we do acts of kindness, and be compassionate towards others. We only have one life. We might as well make the most out of it by touching the lives of other people. It is what I believe will make us truly human as seen in the story of the Metamorphosis.