>What if we discovered an animal or alien species incapable of experiencing "sadness" as we do? The quoted statement seems to preclude this as a possibility, wh

>What if we discovered an animal or alien species incapable of experiencing "sadness" as we do? The quoted statement seems to preclude this as a possibility, which is a very strong assumption. Transcendence of feelings does not imply universality. The fact that a rock cannot (potentially?) feel sadness does not take away something from sadness. Not that I necessarily agree with the authors point of view, but our feelings could be conduits of pure feelings (as a conditional consumption) and at the same time pure feelings can be reifications of felt experiences (production.) >Citation needed So if I wrote the same thing citing OP would you be happy? I think what you are looking is for a citation of proof. On the other hand, do you have any citation/proof to substantiate your disbelief of the statements? I do not think we need a proof for every statement we make. After all, we are more than proof machines, and exploration of the unknown is what leads us to more discoveries. I read this as an opinion/philosophical piece and found it enjoyable in the questions it raises, such as those you focus on.