We do not choose survival as a value, it chooses us.
B. F. SkinnerRead
Each of us has interests which conflict the interests of everybody else... 'everybody else' we call 'society'. It's a powerful opponent and it always wins. Oh, here and there an individual prevails for a while and gets what he wants. Sometimes he storms the culture of a society and changes it to his own advantage. But society wins in the long run, for it has the advantage of numbers and of age.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Individual desires often clash with societal norms, leading to conflict. Ultimately, society as a collective force tends to prevail.
In this quote, B. F. Skinner explores the inevitable conflict between individual interests and societal expectations. He suggests that while individuals may achieve temporary victories, the overarching influence of society — shaped by its collective power, traditions, and longevity — ensures that societal norms remain dominant. This highlights the challenges individuals face in attempting to effect change within a broader social context.
Themes
SocietyIndividualConflictInterestsChange
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech about societal change, one could use this quote to emphasize the resilience of social norms.
More from B. F. Skinner
All quotes →No theory changes what it is a theory about; man remains what he has always been.
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I am opposed to the military use of animals. I am also opposed to the military use of men.
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The ideal of behaviorism is to eliminate coercion: to apply controls by changing the environment in such a way as to reinforce the kind of behavior that benefits everyone.
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Unable to understand how or why the person we see behaves as he does, we attribute his behavior to a person we cannot see, whose behavior we cannot explain either but about whom we are not inclined to ask questions.
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Fame is also won at the expense of others. Even the well-deserved honors of the scientist or man of learning are unfair to many persons of equal achievements who get none. When one man gets a place in the sun, the others are put in a denser shade. From the point of view of the whole group there's no gain whatsoever, and perhaps a loss.
B. F. SkinnerRead
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