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Why do humans spend so much time and energy on procreation/reproduction when it isn't necessary for their survival?
When it comes to human life and its complex being, giving birth is considered one of the miracles mankind could witness. What exactly is birth? Birth is the emergence of a whole new individual from the physical body of a parent, precisely a female.
It is most certainly true that out of all the complex processes a human being goes through every day like digestion, immunity building, heart pumping, etc., ‘reproduction’ (giving birth in layman’s terms) is the only process that a human being is not required to perform to sustain himself/ herself. Despite being a multiplex process, humans don’t actually ‘need’ to reproduce and procreate to preserve themselves. Then why do almost all humans spend so much of their time, energy, and resources on a process which isn’t even needed by them for their survival?
One plausible explanation for this could be the existential need for carrying forward your genes and blood and preserving your legacy. Others suggest societal obligations to have a child and develop a family or simply future insurance for your senility. No matter what the need or reason is, procreation should always be a matter of choice and not a matter of obligations or carrying bloodlines.
A human being’s purpose is far more than giving birth to an individual. A human doesn’t have to be a father or a mother to be great or have a name in the world. A classic example of this theory is the honourable man, Mr. Ratan Tata, who didn’t stress on the fact that having his legacy is something that he requires for his sustainability and credibility. Despite having a huge business empire, which itself is a dream for many, Mr. Ratan Tata, didn’t emphasize the need to carry his genes, just to ensure his legacy in the empire continues, as he believes that a company is different from the individual carrying it.
Carrying the very same reasoning forward of having a choice to procreate, several individuals are judged in society for choosing to remain childless or even the individual whose body doesn’t allow them to become parents, even if they want to. Why is it so hard for people to understand that the entity of an individual is not just limited to giving birth and sustaining a child?
A human being is more than their physical capabilities. You can be an intellectually great person, with a high level of emotional intelligence and critical skills. You can be an excellent candidate for your job or even be an entrepreneur. It is not justified that happiness derived from the birth of a child should always be considered the only source of ultimate human happiness. Certainly, the happiness derived from the painful process of birth isn’t ‘not worthy’, it definitely would be, but treating it above all like it’s the only way of achieving it isn’t healthy either. Giving birth is pro-choice. No one should be obligated or judged into choosing to live a life differently.
Image Credits: Andre Hunter | Unsplash
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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