A doctrine, belief system, or philosophical position that humans share characteristics with beasts, or that emphasizes brutal animal instincts in human nature.
From bestial + -ism (suffix meaning doctrine or practice). Latin bestia (beast) combined with the Greek-influenced suffix creating an abstract noun. This term emerged in philosophical and theological debates about human nature.
Medieval theologians used terms like this to argue against bestialism when debating whether humans had unique souls—it's the philosophical opposite of what makes us 'rational animals,' and Aristotle would have been fascinated by how his ideas got twisted!
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