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    Carmelics

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    Inverse View

    It is not the case that Mencius explicitly argues that humans who follow only instinct are no different from animals, since ren and yi distinguish human nature from mere biological drives.

    ?Set your confidence on the premises below to see your aggregate.

    Reasons For

    1 perspective
    Reason for
    ?
    • 1.Animals display proto-moral behaviors (altruism, reciprocity, fairness) suggesting continuity rather than categorical difference from humans.
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    • 2.Instinct and virtue need not be opposed; humans may express ren and yi *through* refined instincts rather than *against* biological drives.
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    • 3.Mencius may conflate 'acting on mere instinct' with 'having instincts,' when the distinction between unreflective and reflective action matters more.
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    Reasons Against

    1 perspective
    Reason against
    ?
    • 1.Ren (benevolence) and yi (righteousness) require deliberative choice absent in pure instinct, marking a categorical human distinction.
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    • 2.Animals lack moral agency and cannot cultivate virtues through self-reflection, which Mencius sees as essential to humanity.
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    • 3.Mencius's theory of innate moral sprouts assumes humans possess latent ethical capacities animals entirely lack biologically.
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