Fish: A Study in Identity

Are you a fish? Don't just answer "no," and snort at the foolishness of the question. Consider carefully. First of all, what is a fish? It is an organism, classified by humans as being in kingdom Animalia. In that respect, you are in the same category as a fish. A fish is also, like ourselves, a vertebrate. That's two checks right there. A fish, unlike a sponge, has a nervous system, with a collection of nerves that we humans call a "brain." Also obvious: fish move, eat, excrete, secrete, and sense their worlds around them in much the same way that we do. They use gills to take oxygen from their environment, the way we use our lungs to do the same. Although there is a structural difference there, The principle method and purpose of lungs and gills are the same. What makes us any different from a fish? People often define social interaction and relationships as human characteristics, but fish share those as well. somewhat disturbingly, they also share our willingness to kill other members of our own species, and some will not even hesitate to kill those that are bound by blood. There is the fact that "human," or scientifically "Homo sapiens" is a species name, and "fish" is a very large category of organisms, but think about exactly how different the two are, and how uncannily similar.