History Main / HumansAreFlawed

* Robert J. Sawyer's TheNeanderthalParallax trilogy describes a parallel world in which Neanderthal man became the dominant species, and in almost every way homo sapiens compares badly. The Neanderthals live in harmony with nature, having a lower population and no pollution. Further they have [[ApeShallNeverKillApe no crime, violence or war]], and (possible AuthorTract) no religion. The effect is to highlight all of humanity's flaws by [[MarySueTopia describing alternate-world humans that have none of them]].

* Used in ''StrangerInAStrangeLand''. Compared to Martians, Humans are a lot dumber, more violent, and less powerful. However, with a little wisdom from Mars courtesy of Michael, Humans can become immortal, psychic, spiritually peaceful and sexually polyamorous. It's a bit of an AuthorTract, but not an unpleasant one.

So what if [[RousseauWasRight Rousseau]] isn't right and people are fundamentally mean, nasty and brutish? What merit is there in being good if you [[TheEvilsOfFreeWill can't choose to do otherwise?]] Despite the inherent moral flaws of humanity, enough people are putting the effort into being [[NiceGuy nice]] and [[TheHeart kind]] that it [[EarnYourHappyEnding does make a difference]]. Even if BeingGoodSucks, humanity as a whole realizes deep down that BeingEvilSucks harder.[[hottip:*:(And yes, {{Incredibly Lame Pun}}s are part of humanity's ''many'' unrepentant flaws.)]]

* In ''{{Babylon 5}}'', all the races are flawed.

* {{Warhammer}} and TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}: The Chaos gods are usually agreed to be the worst of Mankind's enemies. Unfortunately, since they are basically made of emotion (rage, love, desire and hope), humanity keeps fuelling them even when defeating their agents in the material plane.

* ''SystemShock'': Lo-lo-look at you, ''hacker''. A p-p-pathetic creature of meat and bone, panting and sweating as you r-run through my corridors-s. H-h-how can you challenge a perfect, immortal machine?

-->-- '''TerryPratchett''' and '''NeilGaiman''', ''Literature/GoodOmens''

* {{Warhammer}} and Warhammer40K: The Chaos gods are usually agreed to be the worst of Mankind's enemies. Unfortunately, since they are basically made of emotion (rage, love, desire and hope), humanity keeps fuelling them even when defeating their agents in the material plane.

* ''{{Fallout}}''.

* ''{{Anime/Monster}}'' is largely about this. [[TheMessiah Tenma]] and [[CompleteMonster Johan]] come to totally different conclusions from this premise.

* ''{{Transmetropolitan}}''. A lot. Especially towards the end, where Spider constantly drops that, despite being a bastard and some sort of weird figure for the masses, he's still human like everyone else, along with all the great and the extra-evil that humanity does on a daily basis.

* A theme in the 1998 ''[[{{Film/Merlin}} Merlin]]'' series, best shown when the Lady of the Lake tells Merlin, "It's human to make mistakes, Merlin, and part of you is human . . . the best part."

* This is very apparent in ''[[LANoire L.A. Noire]]'', what with the scores of less-than perfect people Cole encounters. This trop is even {{invoked|Trope}} by [[DirtyCop Roy Earle]], of all people ("Everyone has their vices, even you, Cole."). Even [[ByTheBookCop Cole]] ends up [[spoiler:having an affair and leaving his wife and kids]], and even then, his past was hardly spotless.

* OrderOfTheStick takes an interesting stance on this - when Roy dies, he's told that since he's mortal, it's not really reasonable to expect him to stay perfectly straight-and-narrow all the time, and making the effort is what's really important. This is repeated when he's allowed into the afterlife even though he didn't fulfill his father's Blood Oath; because he ''kept trying'', he gets a pass, where his father consciously abandoned the quest, and is thus stuck in limbo until a member of his family defeats Xykon. Thus it's less "Humans suck because they are flawed" and more "Humans are flawed, but that's okay, because it doesn't have to define them."

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* This is the whole reason for the Q's "[[HumanityOnTrial prosecution]]" of humanity in ''[[StarTrekTheNextGeneration Star Trek: The Next Generation]]''. Of course, the reaction to this is where the PatrickStewartSpeech got its name.

So what if [[RousseauWasRight Rousseau]] isn't right and people are fundamentally mean, nasty and brutish? What merit is there in being good if you [[TheEvilsOfFreeWill can't choose to do otherwise?]] Despite the inherent moral flaws of humanity, enough people are putting the effort into being [[NiceGuy nice]] and [[TheHeart kind]] that it [[EarnYourHappyEnding does make a difference]]. Even if BeingGoodSucks, humanity as a whole realizes deep down that BeingEvilSucks harder.[[hottip:*:(And yes, [[IncrediblyLamePun bad puns]] are part of humanity's ''many'' unrepentant flaws.)]]

->''"It may help to understand human affairs to be clear that most of the great triumphs and tragedies of history are caused, not by people being [[RousseauWasRight fundamentally good]] or [[HumansAreBastards fundamentally bad]], but by people being fundamentally [[ShapedLikeItself people]].\\

[[ThisLoserIsYou Humans suck]]. [[MostWritersAreHuman We're]] flawed in our [[AMindIsATerribleThingToRead mental]], spiritual, and physical aspects, and to top it off we're [[HumansAreMorons a bunch of morons]] and [[HumansAreBastards bastards to everyone else]]... and especially to ourselves.

* This is the general feeling of NewHorizon. Humans did some [[HumansAreBastards terrible things]] and had to leave Earth, but now that they're on a new planet they have a grand future!

* While it first appears to set up a HumansAreBastards message, ''EienNoAselia'' in the end opts for this. You have your instantly nice and understanding characters like Yuuto and Lesteena, your neutralish characters like Kouin and the populace at large and finally the evil people like Shun and Soma. The populace eventually grows to accept Yuuto and the spirits and see them as heroes, while Shun gets a decent motivation in a NewGamePlus and a SympathyForTheDevil moment.

* This brought up in Chapter 28 of ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt'', where Kat the roboticist is depressed due to finding out that the creator of the Court's robots also [[spoiler:cooked up a plan to kill [[IfICantHaveYou a woman who didn't love him and his creations]] to protect the [[ScienceVsMagic technologically-advanced court from the magical denizens of the Giliti Woods]].]] Her irritation is interrupted after she finds a baby pigeon and takes it to her friend Paz, an animal lover who works with [[UnfortunateImplications lab rats]]. Kat has a breakdown after learning all the [[HumansAreBastards bastardly]] things the Court does, but Paz reminds her that the Court is also capable of recognizing its flaws and changing them:

* In many ways a staple of ''ShinMegamiTensei'' games. Despite all the bastardery that humans put you through in most games' plotlines, the [[MultipleEndings pro-human endings]] that involve rejecting the supernatural powers that play with mankind are generally considered to be the most optimistic ones of the lot.

* Discussed in an episode of ''RedDwarf'', referring to JohnFKennedy:

* This brought up in Chapter 28 of ''GunnerkriggCourt'', where Kat the roboticist is depressed due to finding out that the creator of the Court's robots also [[spoiler:cooked up a plan to kill [[IfICantHaveYou a woman who didn't love him and his creations]] to protect the [[ScienceVsMagic technologically-advanced court from the magical denizens of the Giliti Woods]].]] Her irritation is interrupted after she finds a baby pigeon and takes it to her friend Paz, an animal lover who works with [[UnfortunateImplications lab rats]]. Kat has a breakdown after learning all the [[HumansAreBastards bastardly]] things the Court does, but Paz reminds her that the Court is also capable of recognizing its flaws and changing them:

* The Ancients (despite being humanity's progenitors) and the Nox, super advanced alien races in the ''StargateVerse'', seemed to hold the fact that humanity was flawed against the SG-C, seizing on the slightest issue to deliver some moralizing message or condemnation (sometimes appropriate to the situation, but often not). Made worse by the [[NeglectfulPrecursors Ancients]] being a bunch of expletives anyway. By way of contrast the Asgard were both friendly and helpful despite knowing humanity was flawed, likely because unlike the other two they admitted they too had flaws. O'Neil once gave a heartfelt speech to the effect of 'we will mess up a lot as a species, but we are out here with you now and we are trying our best'. As he made it to the Asgard they were very approving.

* Robert J. Sawyer's Neanderthal Parallax trilogy describes a parallel world in which Neanderthal man became the dominant species, and in almost every way homo sapiens compares badly. The Neanderthals live in harmony with nature, having a lower population and no pollution. Further they have [[ApeShallNeverKillApe no crime, violence or war]], and (possible AuthorTract) no religion. The effect is to highlight all of humanity's flaws by [[MarySueTopia describing alternate-world humans that have none of them]].

--> -- '''TerryPratchett''' and '''NeilGaiman''', ''Literature/GoodOmens''

This gets worse if there are [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman other races]] or [[WhatMeasureIsANonSuper super powered people]] in the setting, compared to them we ''[[FantasticRacism really]]'' suck, and there's [[CantArgueWithElves no arguing about it]]. Except... being flawed isn't necessarily a bad thing. To be human is to be flawed, limited, and finite; but to be a ''good'' human is to nonetheless struggle through and work against or despite these limitations. That we [[WeAreAsMayflies live short lives]] and die [[TimeDissonance gives the time in our lives meaning]] and [[CreativeSterility fuel for art, science and creativity]]. That we lack vast magical and psychic powers is countered because we can harness ThePowerOfLove, [[ThePowerOfFriendship Friendship]], [[ThePowerOfTrust and all those]] [[ThePowerOfRock lovely pink emotions.]]

So what if [[RousseauWasRight Rousseau]] isn't right and people are fundamentally mean, nasty and brutish? What merit is there in being good if you [[TheEvilsOfFreeWill can't choose to do otherwise?]] Despite the inherent moral flaws of humanity, enough people are putting the effort into being [[NiceGuy nice]] and [[TheHeart kind]] that it [[EarnYourHappyEnding does make a difference]]. Even if BeingGoodSucks, humanity as a whole realizes deep down that BeingEvilSucks harder.[[hottip:* :(And yes, [[IncrediblyLamePun bad puns]] are part of humanity's ''many'' unrepentant flaws.)]]

This is a typical fantasy/sci fi {{aesop}} that gets referenced in other genres. Essentially, the aesop is we are CursedWithAwesome. If the story has a FantasticAesop against [[FlowersForAlgernonSyndrome removing]] one of the above human flaws to [[{{Transhuman}} better]] [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans mankind]], this trope is usually invoked as the [[ScaleOfScientificSins reason]] why [[ScienceIsBad it's wrong.]]

[[folder: Anime]]

[[folder: Comic Books]]

[[folder: Film]]

[[folder: Literature]]
* Used in ''StrangerInAStrangeLand''. Compared to Martians, Humans are a lot dumber, more violent, and less powerful. However, with a little wisdom from Mars courtesy of Michael, Humans can become immortal, psychic, spiritually peaceful and sexually polyamorous. It's a bit of an AuthorTract, but not an unpleasant one.

** This is lampshaded by the Neanderthals literally having bred out of their own population all the negative traits by a program of enforced sterilizations over thousands of years. (There is also one example involving domestic violence wherein this system is shown to utterly and totally fail.)

[[folder: Live Action TV]]

* The Ancients (despite being humanity's progenitors) and the Nox, super advanced alien races in the ''StargateVerse'', seemed to hold the fact that humanity was flawed against the [=SG-C=], seizing on the slightest issue to deliver some moralizing message or condemnation (sometimes appropriate to the situation, but often not). Made worse by the [[NeglectfulPrecursors Ancients]] being a bunch of expletives anyway. By way of contrast the Asgard were both friendly and helpful despite knowing humanity was flawed, likely because unlike the other two they admitted they too had flaws. [=O'Neil=] once gave a heartfelt speech to the effect of 'we will mess up a lot as a species, but we are out here with you now and we are trying our best'. As he made it to the Asgard they were very approving.

---> On this third planet from this star Sol, you will be a god among men. They are a flawed race. Rule them with strength, my son. That is where your greatness lies.

** [[spoiler: Gabriel]] agrees, but gives us commendation for still trying. [[spoiler: unlike most of his brothers.]]

--->'''Lister:''' I thought you said he was a great guy!
--->'''Kryten:''' He was.
--->'''Rimmer:''' He was also an inveterate womanizer. His affairs were legendary. They never came out while he was alive.
--->'''Kryten:''' All great men have a weakness, an AchillesHeel.
--->'''Rimmer:''' His was just... further up.
* In ''BabylonFive'' all the races are flawed.

[[folder: Tabletop Games]]

[[folder: Video Games]]

** Mainly because [[GodIsEvil the supernatural powers are worse then us.]]
* In ''{{Resident Evil}}: The Darkside Chronicles,'' [[MysteriousWaif Manuela]] comes to the conclusion that the ability to feel pain (mental/emotional pain at our mistakes, in particular) is what makes a person human, and that's a good thing, at least [[spoiler:as opposed to being a super tough (but mindless and destructive) zombie monster.]]

* This is very apparent in ''[[LANoire L.A. Noire]]'', what with the scores of less-than perfect people Cole encounters. This trop is even [[InvokedTrope invoked]] by [[DirtyCop Roy Earle]], of all people ("Everyone has their vices, even you, Cole."). Even [[ByTheBookCop Cole]] ends up [[spoiler: having an affair and leaving his wife and kids]], and even then, his past was hardly spotless.

[[folder: WebComics]]
* This brought up in Chapter 28 of ''GunnerkriggCourt'', where Kat the roboticist is depressed due to finding out that the creator of the Court's robots also [[spoiler: cooked up a plan to kill [[IfICantHaveYou a woman who didn't love him and his creations]] to protect the [[ScienceVsMagic technologically-advanced court from the magical denizens of the Giliti Woods]]]]. Her irritation is interrupted after she finds a baby pigeon and takes it to her friend Paz, an animal lover who works with [[UnfortunateImplications lab rats.]] Kat has a breakdown after learning all the [[HumansAreBastards bastardly]] things the Court does, but Paz reminds her that the Court is also capable of recognizing its flaws and changing them:
--->'''Paz:''' The Court isn't a big monster that does as it pleases. ''Es'' a collection of '''people''', working to do what they think is right.

[[folder: Real Life]]
* There are some radical schools of thought claiming that ''all'' human flaws are only considered such due to societal pressure and should be cultivated rather than suppressed as they are the true and 'natural' traits of humanity.
* This is heavily debated. Some religions, for instance Christianity, argue we are ''inherently'' flawed (to various degrees). This position is called Original Sin. But many philosophies and some religions ''dis''agree with this premise. Even within Christianity itself, this is debated.
** Of course, it should also be pointed out that despite [[HumansAreFlawed humanity's flawed and broken nature]], all but the most utterly cynical branches of Christianity and other faiths and philosophies still point out that humanity inherently possesses value and virtue as well.

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* This is one possible message of ''{{Watchmen}}'': Because humans are flawed, our heroes will be as well, and thus our longing for perfect messianic figures to 'save us' is naive.
* {{Transmetropolitan}}. A lot. Especially towards the end, where Spider constantly drops that, despite being a bastard and some sort of weird figure for the masses, he's still human like everyone else, along with all the great and the extra-evil that humanity does on a daily basis.

* Discworld/LordsAndLadies uses this to contrast with CantArgueWithElves. The elves end up losing ''because'' humans are flawed in comparison. Because humans die and change, they ''learn''.

* Despite shouting "HumanityIsSuperior!" Humans in ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' are most certainly '''not'''. One episode has aliens use Crichton's memory to simulate the possible outcome of revealing themselves to humanity in order to seek asylum. [[StrappedToAnOperatingTable It doesn't end well.]] However, Crichton does become one of the most useful shipmates on Moya because of his [[FishOutOfWater ignorance]] and scientific training. It helps he was stir crazy at appropriate times.

* In BabylonFive all the races are flawed.

* This is how Jor-El views humans in ''{{Smallville}}'', and his spirit bemoans that Clark Kent was raised by humans and thus, thinks like one. One of the only reasons why he did not give up on humanity completely, was because Jonathan Kent's father offered him food and shelter when he visited Earth in the 1960's (even super powered Kryptonians need to eat and sleep). The message on Kal-El's ship:

* Seems to be [[Series/DoctorWho the Doctor's]] view of humanity, as earth is his "favorite/pet planet" so to speak, but will turn around and ridicule humans about their shortcomings should the situation be extreme enough.

** It's not like he doesn't get fed up with [[SufficientlyAdvancedAlien his own species]], though. He spends more time hanging out with us after all.
*** [[LastOfHisKind Hanging around with his own species isn't really an option these days.]]

* The Ancients (despite being humanity's progenitors) and the Nox, super advanced alien races in the ''StargateVerse'', seemed to hold the fact that humanity was flawed against the [=SG-C=], seizing on the slightest issue to deliver some moralizing message or condemnation (sometimes appropriate to the situation, but often not). Made worse by the [[NeglectfulPrecursors Ancients]] being a bunch of expletives anyway (IfYouKnowWhatIMean). By way of contrast the Asgard were both friendly and helpful despite knowing humanity was flawed, likely because unlike the other two they admitted they too had flaws. [=O'Neil=] once gave a heartfelt speech to the effect of 'we will mess up a lot as a species, but we are out here with you now and we are trying our best'. As he made it to the Asgard they were very approving.

--->'''Rimmer:''' His was just... [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean further up]].

* This is how Jor-El views humans in {{Smallville}}, and his spirit bemoans that Clark Kent was raised by humans and thus, thinks like one. One of the only reasons why he did not give up on humanity completely, was because Jonathan Kent's father offered him food and shelter when he visited Earth in the 1960's (even super powered Kryptonians need to eat and sleep). The message on Kal-El's ship:

This is a typical fantasy/sci fi {{aesop}} that gets referenced in other genres. Essentially, the aesop is we are CursedWithAwesome. If the story has a FantasticAesop against [[FlowersForAlgernonSyndrome removing]] one of the above human flaws to [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans better mankind]], this trope is usually invoked as the [[ScaleOfScientificSins reason]] why [[ScienceIsBad it's wrong.]]