Nietzsche and La Fontaine's Fox

[Equinox]

A fox, from Gascogne or from Normandy,
we don't know,
almost dying with hunger, going around
saw a vine-branch with grapes on
so beautiful and ripe to all appearances,
that he thought of reaching and eating them.
But after uselessly jumping and jumping
As the vine was too high for him to reach
He had a second thought,
“They're sour, I can see it,
These grapes are good just for loirs and squirrels!”
I leave for you what I can't have.


Recently I was reading an academic journal about Nietzsche's take on Ressentiment. La Fontaine's fox was used as an example of how we, as humans, invent a reality that is not true in order to avoid disappointment, amongst other things.

The question I pose is thus: why do we do such things and are there any other living things which are known to do the same?




Note: I am unsure whether this ought to be in the philosophy section, though it appears we do not have a psychology section. Mods, feel free to move the thread as you deem appropriate.

[Debaser11]

Well, without being an expert on Nietzsche, I think there is a great deal of truth to his critique on slave morality (where he writes about vanity being one of the hallmark weaknesses of the adherents). We seek validation and either we create that through our own endeavors or slip back into a sort of posturing in order to cope with our inadequacies.

I actually think one sees this even on nation-state levels as well.

"The U.S. is an evil country," says the guy from Syria.

Just my two cents.

As far as are there any other living things that do the same, that seems almost impossible to know. We can't study their thoughts on deep levels, really.

[Psychonaut]

The question I pose is thus: why do we do such things[?]

It's got to be some kind of cognitive bias (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_biases); I just haven't had enough coffee yet to pin down which one it is. As to why? I know that I often engage in this kind of intentional subjectification of responses to negative outcomes for the simple reason that I'd rather be happy than sad. If it's something inconsequential, then there's no reason for me to sulk over it, and I'd rather leave the situation with a smile on my face. It is, I think a good cognitive bias to be aware of, for doing this in response to a situation where a negative outcome presents one with an opportunity for personal growth, then the hard road ought be taken.


and are there any other living things which are known to do the same?

Hard to say, since it's a noetic interpretation of an event. :shrug: