“We” is Everything

The first thing I noticed while reading this chapter is when Dawkins says, "We are survival machines, but 'we' does not mean just people. It embraces all animals, plants, bacteria, and viruses" (P. 21). He states that we are survival machines. Machines are always programmed to do something so what he is stating is that we are programmed to survive. What I think Dawkins means by saying that goes back to the introduction of the book, he says that by nature we are selfish. He means that if we are programmed to survive we´ll do anything in our power to complete our purpose and that's when the selfish gene takes action. We will do anything to survive and we are willing to step on top of others to get what we want no matter the harm we do to others. That's why Dawkins believes that humans must be indoctrinated to be altruistic. To be altruistic is to be generous but to a higher grade, to such level it is that when you are altruistic you even get to stepping on your interests for the interests of others. So being altruistic is the total opposite of being a Survival Machine. Another point that Dawkins touches is that we are all made from similar genes, though in general we result very different. He says; " …the genes, are basically the same in all of us—from bacteria to elephants" (P. 21). We all preserve the same type of genes or DNA in our individual environment. The same type of genes that a bird preserves in the air, is the same type that a tiger preserves in land and that a wale preserves underwater.