Misanthropy

Misanthropy is a general dislike or distrust of the human species, or a disposition to dislike and/or distrust other people. The word comes from the Greek words μίσος ("hatred") and άνθρωπος ("man, human being"). A misanthrope or misanthropist is a person who dislikes or distrusts humanity as a general rule.

Misanthropy does not necessarily imply an inhumane, antisocial, or sociopathic attitude towards humanity and on the contrary is generally a reaction to the observed prevalence of these and other backward properties of the present state of the human race.

Forms of misanthropy
While misanthropes express a general dislike for humanity on the whole, they generally have normal relationships with specific individuals. Misanthropy may be motivated by feelings of isolation or social alienation, or simply contempt for the prevailing characteristics of humanity.

Overt expressions of misanthropy are common in satire and comedy, although intense misanthropy is generally rare. Subtler expressions are far more common, especially for those pointing out the shortcomings of humanity. In extreme cases, misanthropes may remove themselves from society, becoming hermits, recluses, shut-ins, or suicides.

Some religions, or schools of religious thought, maintain that humanity as a whole is evil, or an unnatural cancer on the earth.

Misanthropy in literature
Misanthropy has been ascribed to a number of writers of satire, such as William S. Gilbert ("I hate my fellow-man"), but such identifications must be closely scrutinized, because a critical or darkly humorous outlook toward humankind may be easily mistaken for genuine misanthropy.

In 1992, Southern American essayist Florence King, a self-described misanthrope, wrote a humorous book on the history of misanthropy called With Charity Toward None: A Fond Look at Misanthropy.

Perhaps the most famous example of a misanthrope in literature is the eponymous protagonist in Molière's 1666 play (Fr. Le Misanthrope).

Iago, the villain in William Shakespeare's play Othello manipulates those around him with utter contempt and reaps a genuine pleasure from doing so. One critic has said, for Iago, "Honour, loyalty, reverence, and fidelity - the highest and the holiest virtues of humanity - are but base commodities to be bought and sold." . Shakespeare's most thoroughgoing misanthropist, however, is probably the invective-spewing Timon of acts four and five of the play, Timon of Athens.

The American satirical author Kurt Vonnegut often expressed misanthropic views in his books. In one of his most popular works, Slaughterhouse Five, the protagonist Billy Pilgrim "becomes unstuck in time." He is taken hostage by the Tralfamadorians, a race able to see in 4D, who can travel through time and experience all the events in their lives, not necessarily in chronological order. Through the novel they teach him a fatalistic philosophy, summed up in the book's signature phrase, "so it goes."

In another Vonnegut novel, Breakfast of Champions, the protagonist Kilgore Trout, a science fiction author, writes many books about man destroying the world and the pointlessness of human existence. The book has passages throughout showing the destruction of earth due to man and man's pointless existence. Some quotes from the book include: "'This is a tale of a meeting of two lonesome, skinny, fairly old white men on a planet which was dying fast.'" "'Human beings will be happier - not when they cure cancer or get to Mars or eliminate racial prejudice or flush Lake Erie but when they find ways to inhabit primitive communities again. That's my utopia.'" "'I really wonder what gives us the right to wreck this poor planet of ours.'"

Some works by Franz Kafka such as The Metamorphosis and "A Hunger Artist" also display misanthropic views.

In No Exit, Jean-Paul Sartre wrote, "So that is what hell is. I would never have believed it. You remember: the fire and brimstone, the torture. Ah! the farce. There is no need for torture: hell is other people."

Misanthropy in modern culture
In film, many villains could be read as misanthropes, particularly those with plots of mass destruction against humans in general and not specific targets. The antagonistic Agents of the film The Matrix believe humanity to be a virus, justifying the mass mental imprisonment and exploitation of the human population. This is in a similar creative vein to Skynet from the Terminator films; a sentient computer system which determines that its human creators are themselves a threat.

In television, a hatred or dislike of, not so much humanity as a whole, but of dealing with people and society in general is a comedic theme in shows like Futurama, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld, Black Books and House.

In music, explicit misanthropy is frequently presented in various sub-genres of heavy metal music, particularly black metal. This is especially evident in "one man band" projects, a physical embodiment of misanthropy and a rejection of humanity. At least one person, Zephyrous of the group Darkthrone, is believed to have committed suicide over misanthropy. Boyd Rice, in 1990, released a CD/LP titled "Music, Martinis and Misanthropy". The release includes songs that are at times even playful, such as "Disneyland Can Wait", yet contains a disdain for humanity consistently throughout. Many Boyd Rice releases are consistent with this theme. A more popular would be the Marilyn Manson song 1996 ("I can't believe in the things that don't believe in me now it's your turn to see misanthropy"). The squatcore band Leftover Crack also have misanthropic leanings, with songs like 'Stop The Insanity' talking about exterminating all of mankind as a kind of final solution. The ethic is not isolated to this one song, though, and runs through the majority of the bands material, as well as much of Choking Victims.

Certain stand-up comedians have adopted misanthropy in their criticisms of society and popular culture. The late comedian Bill Hicks made cynical statements like "[humanity] is a virus with shoes" and "Hitler had the right idea, he was just an underachiever!" However, Hicks' misanthropy is joined always by his lifelong avocations of equality and peace, distrusting governments and systems that attempt in any way to sway the complete freedom that human beings deserve as individuals inhabiting a whole. An example of this is his words that end the London concert, "Revelations": "You know all that money America spends on nuclear weapons and defence every year? Instead, if we spent that money feeding and clothing the poor of the world, not one human being left out, as it would pay for it many times over, we could, as one race, explore outer space together in peace - forever." It could be argued that his misanthropy stemmed from the disinterest of his American audiences and the cold receptions that these ideas received.

Comedian George Carlin also is famous for making several comments based on his misanthropic point of view of human beings and society. He has said on numerous occasions and performances that he enjoys the idea of lots of people dying and suffering, and how he sees human beings as capable of doing anything due to their perverted nature. These comments can be found in some of his HBO specials, like Jammin' in New York and Life is Worth Losing.

Einstein in his essay, "Why Socialism?" relates the story of a colleague who in response to Einstein's mention that nuclear weapons raised the possibility of extinction of the human race replied 'what would be so bad about that?'. Einstein traces this misanthropy to society's current basis, i.e. the each against all competition characteristic of dog-eat-dog capitalism:

I recently discussed with an intelligent and well-disposed man the threat of another war, which in my opinion would seriously endanger the existence of mankind, and I remarked that only a supra-national organization would offer protection from that danger. Thereupon my visitor, very calmly and coolly, said to me: "Why are you so deeply opposed to the disappearance of the human race?"

Freud is also said to have been bitterly misanthropic in his later years, perhaps at least partially as a result of the events in Germany in the 1930s: I have found little that is "good" about human beings on the whole. In my experience most of them are trash, no matter whether they publicly subscribe to this or that ethical doctrine or to none at all. That is something that you cannot say aloud, or perhaps even think.