Genes Moult Their Humans

It's curious how in genes being selfish is a favorable quality. From a young age, children are taught that sharing is caring. That being altruistic is essential to develop into a good human being. As kids grow older they are encouraged to put themselves in the position of others. Not judge anyone until they have walked a mile in their shoes. Always thinking about how others may feel, or how certain actions will positively or negatively affect others. 

However in the case of genes, being alturistic is clearly a negative quality. For survival means genes must think selfishly. They must constantly think of what is best for them. What they can do to outsmart their competition and manipulate other genes in their environment so that they will benefit from them. "At the gene level, altruism must be bad and selfishness good."(p.36)

In The Selfish Gene, Richard Dawkins also explores the idea that we are simply the survival machines of these genes. Created by them, and then used by them until we die, which at some point we inevitable will. He highlights how truly temporary human life is in respect to genes. "They are replicators and we are their survival machines. When we have served our purpose we are cast aside. But genes are denizens of geological time: genes are forever."(p.35) 

Metaphorically, we are only as important to genes as a snake's outer skin is to the actual snake. These animals are constantly growing out of their shell. As time transpires, snakes shed their outer covering and grow a new one. The old one is simply left in the dust, now that it has outgrown its usefulness. We work much the same way. The genes create us and make us stable enough to reproduce and pass the genes on to a new body. Once we do though, our job is done. We will die (of old age if nature allows it) and that is that. Genes live on and we as individuals simply die. Of course exact chromosomes won't be identical in future generations, but the genes remain mostly intact. "The genes are not destroyed by crossing-over, they merely change partners and march on. Of course they march on. That is their business."(p.35)

Even though some people may disagree, in reality we are factors manipulated by genes. They create us, they make sure we reproduce, and afterward they let us die. It is not necessarily intentional, but it is the way that the world works. We tend to say that genes are ours. Claiming, that our children have our genes for this and that. Yet in reality, genes clearly don't belong to us. In fact, we belong to the genes. We are just their disposable, protective covering that delivers them from generation to generation.