Page 14 - Nutshell 2

“You mean like this dust bunny?” Chiffon lifted a paw to reveal the
object of her query.
“Correct. And that kind of fantasy is all the invention we need. More
would be counter-productive, cutting into the time we need to do real
hunting. But the human brain won’t stop at solving the basic problems
of life. It is out of control: it is full of dust bunnies that are neither
bunnies nor dust. That makes them restless, and they are always
interrupted by their imaginations interfering with the real information
provided by their senses. In fact, they often don’t even trust their senses!
It makes them respond inappropriately to situations, get into fights for
no reason, and worry themselves sick.”
“That is senseless.” pronounced Meringue. “And does make them very
different from cats. But how did you discover this weakness?”
Grimalkin regarded her interlocutor, the smartest of the bunch.
“Some of it is the result of patient observation, as your mother advised.
The most obvious manifestation, at least for me, is how they treat us as
imaginary dust bunnies instead of real animals. This you will learn
whenever they use the word ‘cat’ in reference to things that have nothing
to do with cats, like the rain. And they also talk about themselves and
their behavior as if it is the same as ours. It is quite shocking at first to
listen to them and realize they cannot be talking sense. Then you will
conclude that their big brains are a hindrance as well as a help.”
Kitty Boy Floyd wrinkled his nose. “They really think they are cats?”
“Oh, it’s worse than that,” said the old queen. “They believe that we
are like them! First they believe their own traits are identical to ours
because of some superficial similarity. Then they give them names with
‘cat’ included. And that ends up convincing them that we are the models
and originators of those traits! It’s outrageous. When one of them says
something nasty about another human, they call that ‘catty.’ When they
tease and torture another human, that is playing ‘cat and mouse.’ If one
of them can’t or won’t speak, a ‘cat’s got his tongue.’ Their ideas about
fighting, loving, grooming, caution, unpredictability, contentment,
curiosity, beauty, indifference, relaxation and other aspects of their lives
are often expressed in terms of our behavior.”
“Doesn’t that just mean we developed those qualities first?” asked
Furina. “And wouldn’t that mean they are not confused about them
when they give us that credit?”
“No!” Grimalkin was definite. “Those traits are like imaginary dust
bunnies, things they made up and then thought were real. In fact, if you
think about it, we don’t have any of those characteristics at all. Why?