Is Pain in Vain?

After distinguishing what pain is, and my theory of its purpose, from a technical perspective it seems like pain –whether emotional or physical- is a tool used to avoid a scenario where harm will come to you. From this point of view, pain is beneficial and helpful when in its intended context.

Most typical natural occurrences would be in the context of pains intended function. For example, a broken foot causes pain as a function to cause the individual to refrain from using it until it’s healed. Or the pain from food poisoning causes you to not eat that substance again, since it is harmful to your health. Emotional pain from being away from somebody you care for causes you to be more likely to stay together, which is typically beneficial. These are examples of the theoretically intended context, where pain should be beneficial to the individual, based on evolution. These basic functions of pain would apply to only basic humans, with a lack of extensive consciousness and therefore a lack of extensive scenarios where emotional pain becomes potential throughout life. As humans have evolved after the point of conscious awareness, natural selection no longer has a very strong effect.

Artificial selection –from conscious choice of human reproduction, as well as artificial sustenance of life- causes an adaptation of conscious awareness to be sensitively influenced, therein, causing a whole new variety of potential scenarios for emotional pain to become a theoretically unnatural side effect. In these unnaturally intended circumstances caused by artificial selection, emotional pain theoretically becomes applicable to a much wider variety of scenarios, since comprehension of concepts grows –and therefore potential for comprehension of a negative aspect. As emotional pain has developed to occur from knowledge of a negative aspect of an occurrence, the pain will then occur for the comprehension of most negative aspects, which people develop the capability to be aware of. This potential for emotional pain would likely inherently be a developmental stage of intellectual progression -given the initial existence of emotional pain-, but would likely not persist in the case of continued typical natural selection.

Therefore, emotional pain beyond any minimal practically beneficial scenario is likely an unintended side effect, resulting from human choice. The practical benefits of pain would apply only to typical, naturally occurring circumstances in life, without any drastic factor applied to a scenario by conscious choice. With the added potential for conscious intervention and therein an intended extremity of a variable being applied (by said conscious choice), comes the additional potential circumstance for irregular and unnecessary pain, regardless of side effects from artificial selection. This potential unnecessary pain –caused by conscious decision- is not beneficial, but only a result of choice.

So, is pain in vain? It seems the only types of pain in existence, which are non-beneficial (or in vain) are not inherently intended, but a result of free will and human choice.