“Now
is the time that face should form another...Die Single and thine
image dies with thee.” – William Shakespeare, Sonnet 3.
In this
(post)modern society we hail from, I am truly flabbergasted by a
strange notion: having children is no longer in vogue. As a
scientific materialist, I find this view quite bizarre. Our species,
Homo Sapiens Sapiens, (Wise, wise man – we have evolved to
become doubly wise), is successful, after all, due to our sex drive.
In my moments of quiet reflection – whether in the bath, or during
my journey to work – I am often drawn towards an obsessive train of
thought. My thought process is as so:
1) 99.9 %
of all species that have ever lived on Earth are extinct.
2) Humans
are not extinct.
3)
Therefore, there is something different about humans, and there was
something different about early humans, too.
Decisions
that early humans made have lead to us being how we are now. Our
bodies, our voices, our brains and our language are the direct result
of hundreds of thousands of years of human evolution. It’s
extremely fascinating. We are, as of this moment, a link in a very
long chain. Our existence is owed to choices made long ago –
choices we have no input towards.
Like all
other species, Homo Sapiens Sapiens lives to reproduce. This,
from a very narrow scientific evolutionary perspective, is our
purpose. People may think that this is a mechanical view of
existence. I would contest this; the whole process, from the wooing,
to the act of sex, from the pregnancy to the birth are all terribly
profound. The science of conception, of the sperm’s 23 chromosomes
meeting with the egg’s 23 chromosomes is just beautiful. After all,
it contains the essence of man.
The sex
drive is so strong because it has evolved to be so. Sex is so
enjoyable because it has evolved to be so. Let’s be honest; if sex
wasn’t enjoyable, no one would engage in intercourse. However, in
these (post)modern times, we have become too scientifically advanced
for our own good. We have learned to separate sex for pleasure and
sex for reproduction. You must understand that evolution is so clever
that it evolved to catch us out. Many people, after all, are the
result of an unplanned fumble (myself included).
Despite
this, humans have now invented contraception. Contraception allows
humans to avoid pregnancy, and therefore, fewer children are born. In
this very (post)modern world, humans have developed science which
supersedes evolution. It is a very strange set of affairs.
The
capitalist system is responsible for many things, and moral decadence
is one thing that is often heralded against it. Children, the most
important link in the chain to our continuation as a species, have
been reduced to a financial cost. Many people don’t have children
because they are “too selfish” to be parents.
However,
they are also very selfish with regard to their ancestral genetics
too. By not having children, you are destroying, killing stone dead,
a genetic line which is hundreds of thousands of years old. These are
the following people’s genetics you have destroyed:
1) 2
Parents.
2) 4
Grandparents.
3) 8
Great-grandparents.
4) 16
Great (x2) grandparents.
5) 32
Great(x3) grandparents.
6) 64
Great(x4) grandparents.
7) 128
Great(x5) grandparents
Now, I
will admit, whereas your parent’s genetic legacy will die with you,
it’s plausible that there are others to carry that legacy on. This
becomes truer the further one goes back. Your Great(x5)grandparents
may have 31 other lines to go through...but if we all think like
that, our species will become extinct.
Also, by
ending your genetic legacy, you have destroyed everything your
ancestors fought for. Life was far more challenging in the past than
it is now. There was no central heating; food was scarce;
neighbouring tribes would be likely to murder all the men from your
tribe and rape all the women – such was the barbaric nature of man.
We are the product of those who were successful.
Our
ancestors lived under that duress so that we could live. They fought
against savages; they farmed through ice and droughts. They survived.
They had culture. We have the genes and the memes of our ancestors.
Consequently, should we really espouse such thoughtless sexual
hedonism as a philosophy?
I think
the answer to that is a resounding no. The oft mentioned quote, which
is attributed to Socrates, is as follows: “The unexamined life is
not worth living.” The fact is that having children forces the
individual to examine many things: philosophy, values, religion, and
politics. You have to reconsider who you are as a human being; only
then can you help a new human being self-actualise.
Respect
the ancestors. It is so profound to create life, and to nurture it.
Being a life-giver is a truly beautiful thing. You owe it to the
past, the now, and the future. The choice is up to you: to beget, or
not to beget, that is the question!
Samuel
Mack-Poole
