Rebel Against the Monkeysphere!

What the heck? What is a monkeysphere and why do we need to fight against it? Well, we’re going to get into that, and why we need to take a stand against our primate brains! Believe it or not, there is a link here between critical thinking and, well, monkeys and monkeyspheres. Critical thinking can help us break out of our monkeyspheres and help us be more empathetic to strangers. Let’s learn more!

First, What is a Monkeysphere?

A monkeysphere is based on the idea of Dunbar’s Number, which is a theory about the number of close relationships a human being can have. The phrase “monkeysphere” is coined by Cracked author David Wong, and refers to the sphere of individuals a monkey (or, for our purposes, human beings) can typically empathize with. Basically, it means that as people, we can only empathize with a certain amount of other people. This is based on research of the similarity of human brains and primate brains, and the ability of both humans and monkeys to relate to others in their groups. Dunbar estimates that the number of individuals that humans are easily able to relate to is about 100-200 people.

While this might seem like a lot of people, it really isn’t. This is why you can get so irritated with someone who you don’t know, and why people are more likely to commit crimes against people that they don’t know. Those people are outside the monkeysphere, and therefore “fair game”. It’s also why you hear horrible stories on the news, but you aren’t grieving the loss of your fellow man. They are outside of your realm of comprehension, so they are just faceless numbers. We can use critical thinking to break us out of our monkeyspheres though! Or at least, to help us be aware when it’s limiting our ability to relate to others.

Why is This Bad?

So, historically, operating within the monkeysphere has gone awfully. If you don’t agree, you can look to history for the proof. Millions of people have been killed in wars and genocides because they were simply outside of the opposing side’s monkeysphere. Because we can’t empathize with the opposing side, it’s easy to kill them and take their land. Just ask the Native Peoples.

Also, that’s why it’s so simple to go into full-on “Karen” and demand things from retail clerks in a way that we would never act with someone that we know. Those unfortunate workers are beyond the walls of our ability to empathize, so they are out of luck when it comes to politeness.

Why is This Good?

Well, we are hardwired to think this way, and it’s a bummer and a blessing. At some point, caring about too many people would become exhausting and we would perish. You can’t take care of the whole world. But, by being aware of the issue, I think we can apply some critical thinking (Yes! I am still on theme!) to combat our natural ability to be jerks to strangers, and in turn to ourselves.

When we limit ourselves to our monkeysphere, it’s possible we lack the context of the larger world. We may hold ourselves to standards that are not reasonable. It’s important to remember that somebody, somewhere has the same failings as you do. The thing is, you may not know anything about their struggles because they are outsiders to your personal monkeysphere. So the next time you feel like you’ve invented some new kind of failure, just know that someone else has failed spectacularly before you in the same way, and moved on, too.

How Can Critical Thinking Help?

Now that you’re aware that you can only care for a specific amount of people, what do you do about it? How can critical thinking help us out here? While I don’t think that we can change our nature, we can work within it to be better people.

Critical thinking emphasizes questioning reality, interrogating it. When you find yourself reacting and behaving in ways that limits you to your monkeysphere, you can apply critical thinking principles to question yourself, your motivations, and your behaviors to get you out of your own head. This may help you try to experience yourself in the ways others are experiencing you. Even, and especially, how you are being experienced by those outside of your monkeysphere. Here’s some ways you can interrogate your own reality and get out of your own head.

• How would I feel if…? Most interactions we have with others can be diffused by using a variation of the Golden Rule. What’s that? Basically some kindergarten level of critical thinking that often gets pushed to the wayside. Treat others how you would treat people within your monkeysphere. Obviously, the most central person in your personal monkeysphere is yourself, so be aware that others have feelings, too, and act accordingly.
• They have lives, too. Everyone is out here trying to pursue life, liberty and happiness. And here’s the clincher, you are outside of most human’s monkeyspheres, so you are fair game to them. Don’t be surprised if someone else treats you like you treat strangers. You are the stranger in this situation. Take it with a grain of salt when someone treats you shabbily. It’s not because they hate you, it’s because they can’t empathize with you. It’s the ultimate case of, “It’s not you, it’s me.”
• Be aware of your inability. I think the best way for all of us to combat our primate brains is to be aware of it. Now that you know why you can scream obscenities when someone cuts you off in traffic, you can work to combat that behavior. They cut you off because you are the outsider in their tribe, so you don’t matter. Getting a sense of perspective will help you to not be so offended when you’re treated badly.

Spreading the Love

Even though we can’t evolve out of the monkeysphere by reading this blog article, we can become aware of the ways in which we care (or don’t) for our fellow man. Just be conscious of how and why you treat others the way that you do, and be more forgiving of the way that they treat you.

Have you ever had a horrible experience with strangers? Have you ever treated someone outside your monkeysphere badly? How do you fight against it? Please share your experiences, strengths, and hopes below. Until next time!