Aleea

“Culture isn’t necessary for the survival of mankind; for that, you only need bread and water. It’s also true that with bread and water to drink, humans survive; but with only this, humanity dies. If human beings aren’t deeply moved by beauty, if they don’t close their eyes and activate their imaginations, if they aren’t capable of asking themselves questions and discerning the limits of their ignorance, then they are men or women, but they are not complete persons: nothing significant distinguishes them then from a salmon or a zebra or a musk ox.”
― Antonio Iturbe, La bibliotecaria de Auschwitz

“Feelings arise when emotions penetrate our consciousness, and we become aware of them.”
― Frans de Waal, Mama's Last Hug: Animal Emotions and What They Tell Us about Ourselves

“Emotions infuse everything with meaning and are the main inspiration of cognition, also in our lives.”
― Frans de Waal, Mama's Last Hug: Animal Emotions and What They Tell Us about Ourselves

“Our desire for sharp divisions is at odds with evolution’s habit of making extremely smooth transitions.”
― Frans de Waal, Mama's Last Hug: Animal Emotions and What They Tell Us about Ourselves