animal nature
- noun
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- But if we admit it, we must account for that factor; we must explain or discover by what law, by what connection, by what necessity, and by what strange impulsion of choice a spirit pure of all animal nature assumes a body and nature of animality prepared for it by a lower order of being.
There is a kind of brutality, a kind of reduction to our animal nature in in harshness, the Epicureans would say.
- There is a kind of brutality, a kind of reduction to our animal nature in in harshness, the Epicureans would say.
- All of this is an overlay on the rest of our animal nature, which is not bad and has to be there in order for us to function.
Examples
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So philosophy, for Nietzsche, always involves a kind of pulling back away from our instincts, our drives, our animal nature, our sensuality.
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But if we seek freedom for our animal nature alone, we shall discover that we have lost all the freedom that, if life is to be worth living, our human nature requires.
Academic text (1999) -
We have an animal nature and a human nature.
Academic text (1999) -
Had animal nature driven off the humans?
Blog text (2) -
For the most part, there is nothing especially loathsome or terrible about our animal nature.
Academic text (1999) -
And then it hugs in because, yeah, that that again, part of a higher animal nature is this bonding that that takes place.
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Then it is the most reasonable and concordant conclusion that man has the animal nature because the developing self in him, like the developed body, has had a past subhuman evolution.
Blog text (2) -
But beneath Jan's trim beard and prim demeanor, there may well have been a strong animal nature.
Academic text (1999) -
His impulsive behavior often reveals his animal nature, which contrasts with his usually rational persona.
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Many artists tap into their animal nature to express deeper emotions through their work.
Synonyms
The body's natural side and instincts, not the mind
A tendency to act with animal instincts, like sudden fear or hunger
How Instinctive
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Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'instinctive, physical, or sensual aspects' is directly and compositionally derived from 'animal' (relating to bodily appetites) plus 'nature' (disposition), so the phrase transparently denotes an instinctive disposition. This is a common, cross-linguistic conceptual combination, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The phrase animal nature paints a picture of an animal guided by its nature, with basic urges like hunger, fear, or desire. That's why it means the 'instincts' or 'physical' side of a person rather than the mind.