THE POST-ANTHROPO-SCENE: RECLAIM THE HUMANE

Though the word “humane” stems from "human," the concept of humaneness implies compassion towards people as well as other-than-human entities. A graph of humane’s usage over time shows a steady decline since 1800, a brief upward trend in the early 1970s, then a steep downturn around the turn of the 21^st century. Is the entire concept of humaneness disappearing?

Philosopher-physicist Karen Barad envisions a “post-humanist” world in which humanity along with everything else is not just equal and interconnected, but intra-connected—intra-mattering—through a dynamic process of constantly-morphing intra-relationships. In a mattering mindset subject and object are simultaneously separate and inherently entangled. Caring for an “other” is, quite literally, a form of care for oneself.

To “humanize” is to care, elevate, respect, relate…to do what humans at our best are capable of. In a similar vein, “anthropomorphize” is to ascribe humanesque characteristics to other-than-human beings such as plants, animals, geological features, or forces of nature. Anthropomorphization is sometimes considered a quaint, if slightly risky, poetic device, a handy metaphorical tool to be used with discretion and respect for the Umwelt of the entity under consideration.

On the other hand, to “dehumanize” someone or something is to degrade it, to divorce oneself from responsibility for her, his, their, or its well-being. Soldiers are trained to dehumanize an enemy to rationalize fighting, torture, and killing. Imperialists dehumanize indigenous populations to justify genocide, extraction, and colonization. Nativists dehumanize immigrants to justify cruelty. Capitalists de-humanize labor to allow for exploitation. Dehumanization is routinely employed as a precursor to all manner of predatory behavior.

Dehumanization can be denormalized though the radical rehumanization of everyone and everything. A simple mental shift transforms the pigeon in the park or the mountain in the distance from “it” to “him,” “her,” or “them.” A kind of “post-anthropomorphism,” the reflexive granting of equal status, respect, and care to every being and every thing, begins with an assumption that beings are more alike than different…as opposed to presumed separateness-until-proven-connected.

For the scientifically-inclined: this mindset does not impair the capacity for objectivity when necessary, nor does it threaten empiricism. In fact, empathy can inspire the design of more humane, ethical, and beneficial experiments. After all, the notion of objective observation is a poetic device too.

It turns out that poetic devices—including basic, shared assumptions about the ways the world works—can have extremely tangible effects, for better or worse, on the ways we treat each other and the planet we share. By choosing a social imaginary that presumes equality and interrelationship, rather than one that perpetuates exploitation and abuse, individual everyday lives become re-infused with purpose and meaning. Detachment leads to alienation and nihilism, while caring leads to a sense of cooperation and fulfillment.

In this time when a cursory glance at the daily news confirms that people are capable of so much damage and violence, it is important to bear in mind that a small percentage of the total population is causing the vast majority of the harm.

The humane can be reclaimed by acting with kindness, compassion, and empathy at every possible opportunity.

Originally published December 2014, updated March 2026