dog philosophy
Researchers claim it’s impossible; the canine body language is merely to appease their superior, the human. They proceed that the dog is incapable, unworthy in the eyes of the human, to know right from wrong, good from bad. They only know to follow the directions given to them by those in power. Good behavior yields rewards. Bad behavior brings punishment.
So then, what is guilt?
It could be argued that guilt displays in the same way physically for the human. You may keep your head down and avoid eye contact, just like the dog does in order to to appease. Guilt may manifest for many reasons, even for things that may seem illogical or otherwise arbitrary outside of social convention (i.e; being at rest, eating sweets, etc.). But why do we feel guilt for these things? Have we been told by a larger figure, as the dog is told by the human, to be shameful for things innate to our nature?
The dog, who displays the same physical response as us time and again, is brushed off by the researchers who claim the human is the end all be all for emotion. I ask simply: is this really the case? Is it merely that the human, in all their glory, can portray their perspective in a way the dog can not?