ADAM AND EVE AND PINOCCHIO: On Being and Becoming Human

Thoughtful arguments in favor of the human race's potential for positive self-realization, by the author of Passionate Attachments (1987), Rediscovering Love (1986), etc. The best thing that ever happened to Adam, Gaylin suggests, was taking a bite out of that forbidden apple, thus giving humankind the unique opportunity to refashion itself in the image of God or the devil, according to its individual will. Better that than the dull alternative of life in Paradise, where the absence of strife leaves little opportunity for growth or even the satisfaction inherent in overcoming great odds. As in the humble tale of Pinocchio, heartbreak and suffering temper the human soul, Gaylin points out as makes a case for optimism regarding humankind's ongoing struggle with its own imperfections. Though he admits that our unique abilities may lead to the destruction of life on this planet, they also provide the possibility that that which is best in us--our imagination and creativity--will be used to forge entirely new and better worlds instead. Denying the perceived threats of robotics and biotechnology that many claim rob us of our sense of uniqueness, Gaylin suggests that both serve instead to remind us that the joy we experience in the act of creation, in love, in sex, and in productive work are ours alone, and it is this joy that makes us truly human. Ever an embryo, full of potential, humanity remains suspended between heaven and hell. Gaylin concludes with a vote of confidence in its future. Generally convincing.