Emotions aren't instincts, though. Instincts are survival routines that can be passed down, and when needed can work faster than thought. Some can manifest as emotions, like fear of snakes, but they're deeper than the feeling itself.
In fact the root of instincts is valence: the ability and desire to move toward what sustains life and away from what threatens life. It's the first thing an organism has to develop in order to persist, and while it is a simple binary, it's surprisingly hard to get up that first step. Even sessile organisms need ways to meet their survival requirements and thus can be responsive in ways that humans just don't think about.
So when crafting an organism for storytelling, think about what it needs, how it pursues those needs, what threatens it, how it defends itself -- those are all basic biology. And biology is deeply weird.
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timeasmymeasure
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2025-02-18 02:00 am (UTC)Emotions aren't instincts, though. Instincts are survival routines that can be passed down, and when needed can work faster than thought. Some can manifest as emotions, like fear of snakes, but they're deeper than the feeling itself.
In fact the root of instincts is valence: the ability and desire to move toward what sustains life and away from what threatens life. It's the first thing an organism has to develop in order to persist, and while it is a simple binary, it's surprisingly hard to get up that first step. Even sessile organisms need ways to meet their survival requirements and thus can be responsive in ways that humans just don't think about.
So when crafting an organism for storytelling, think about what it needs, how it pursues those needs, what threatens it, how it defends itself -- those are all basic biology. And biology is deeply weird.
One of my favorite references is Humon Comics.