Do Apes have a Sense of Awe?

The history of humanity is a reflection of the history of the evolution of human consciousness. Behind every historical event lies a matrix of beliefs that reveal the state of consciousness of the individuals and groups at that period of time. Humanity has gone a long way from the animal to the conscious being. From survival in clans to belonging in tribalism; from self esteem in feudalism, to common heritage in nationalism, on to the cohesion of shared vision in democracy and onto globalisation with establishment of global institutions of governance to promote the economic, social, and environmental sustainability of humanity and the planet. Yet after this passage through aeons of time, you might ask; after all this, how then do humans differ from animals?

Many will respond that people possess consciousness, and animals don't. However, there is yet no general consent on what consciousness is, and how one could check its presence in humans and its absence in animals. There is a vagueness to the fundamental notion, we have consciousness, they don’t. We are not going to spend time discussing the inner life of a snail - is it thinking, ‘I must do something about this carapace, it’s most uncomfortable,’ etc. It is therefore a vague notion that distinguishes us from what we might consider inferior creatures. This indeterminate notion seems even more vague when we are reminded by Marks (2003) that “...human genome research has revealed that we are just 2% different from chimpanzees genetically.” (What It Means to Be 98% Chimpanzee Apes, People, and Their Genes p186).

When defining the difference between us and them, many people might claim that ‘we’ have evolved. With the use of the word ‘evolved,’ thoughts naturally turn to Darwin, and it is interesting to note, Rachels, The Moral Implications of Darwinism (1991), that Darwin never liked evolution as a term, using it only because of its general currency. Indeed, in the Origins of Species (1871 p. 445) Darwin found it necessary to claim that there was “...no fundamental difference” between the mental faculties of humans and apes, not only in their physical construction but in their “mental faculties” as well. This has led some, Marks (2003) for example, to argue that apes, the benchmark by which humans measure their similarity to all other animals, are entitled to the rights of humans.

Watching some animal behaviour programmes on television, I have been led to wonder, far-fetched though it may seem, whether apes possess a sense of awe. Could these ‘cousins’ of ‘ours’ even distinguish between the benign and the sublime? Does the ape in the forest reflect on the impending power of a coming storm, or does it marvel as it observes the majesty of a setting sun?
Many might reply that it is only us that have a sense of wonder and awe. But whether consciously experienced by our cousin primates, or just by us, suffering, pleasure and grief are by-products of consciousness, and so is desire. None of those personal states would ever be known to each of us without consciousness.