
The ‘grieving’ orca mother? Projecting emotions on animals is a sad mistake - okket
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/14/grieving-orca-mother-emotions-animals-mistake
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MrQuincle
The alternatives offered are: 1) the orca felt hope, 2) the orca was confused.

This article does not give any insight why and when animals would or would not
grieve.

Functional homology is a method. If we assume that the caudate nucleus
responds in canines similarly to the one in humans, we can say things about
emotions in animals. In the end you will need more hypotheses to still keep
the human up a pedestal. For example, if the owner enters the fMRI room, the
caudate can supposed to activate because the human is recognized while in
humans itself it fulfills an emotional role. In this way you can explain
differences only be denying functional homology.

It would somehow "degrade the human experience" is philosophical argument that
I don't get. My feelings are not somehow less if another sentient being can
feel the same. Is my pain less if someone else can feel it too? Do I need to
feel it "better" to be able to deserve the term?

