Psych explanations for knife love

So you associated it with excitement and a must have, kind of like clothing or your underwear. I guess that would explain why I feel naked without my knife on me. :eek:

Funny really, because I would feel less awkward without my underwear or my shoes than I would :rolleyes: without my knife!
 
STR said:
Funny really, because I would feel less awkward without my underwear or my shoes than I would :rolleyes: without my knife!
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Similarly, I'd much rather buy someone's used knife than their underwear or shoes.

My guess was that we're just off-kilter.
 
A knife is often used in food preparation. Moms are the primary food preparers.

From the time we are small we have been exposed to (1) moms/parents, (2) food, and (3) utensils including knives. So our earliest life experiences have been associated with knives.

Knives are one of the oldest tools of mankind so why would we not be curious about them?
 
I love this type of topic and have chipped in whenever it comes up here. :o

There's the obvious Psychobiological/Anthropological explanation already articulated here (oops, that's my months quota of big words done in one sentence) - Using and carrying a sharp tool gave us a massive leg up in the survival race - so our love of good knives (and other 'readiness' gadgets) is a deeply implanted memory.

That's the 'nature' side covered. In the 'nurture' side - that is, things that have conditioned me in my lifes experiences, is the association between carrying a knife and going camping with my mates or fishing with my Dad.

Put simply, without a knife it's just a bushwalk - when I'm carrying a knife it's an adventure.

So if any of my so-called 'enlightened' hippy friends ask me why I'm carrying a knife I tell them 'it's to get in touch with my inner child'.
 
We are definatley survival oriented and are obssesed with knifes simply because we see their potential value. Many people today don't see the need for knives but Im sure there opinions would change if they were ever in a serious survival situation. Some phycologists would say that we "manifest our will to survive in such objects" but simply we want to insure our saftey at all times. BTW I'm sure im not the only one that really likes math, I would think knife lovers would really like math as I do but maybe not. The Moral of the story is knives are really, really, really great!
 
Mongo-man said:
IMHO the fact that we collect knives (and other weapons) is a part of primitive male behaviour, where we subcontious are drawn to certain objects that give us an edge to other men.

In the not so long ago past the best male got the best survival rate, the best female and the most offspring. Having the right tool to become the best male was important.
The fact that we evolved from using a sharpened stick to the H-bomb can all be traced back to this primitive response. Having a better hunting/defense tool made the difference. That's why these tools have evolved in such a way.

This behaviour is inherent to all males, although the amount of attraction toward these objects can differ.

Just like maternal instincts have a way more profound effect on females, knives, guns, survival equipment have a more profound effect on males.

This is not a bad instinct, untill a few hundred years ago these skills where needed to survive.

Now, unlike primitive female behaviour (taking care for infants) male primitive behaviour (war mongering/ survival skills) is been frowned upon by the society because primitive male behaviour is seen as troublesome in modern society.

Only in a true survival situation where we have to fall back on our own survival skills these objects become again important.

Once the whole public services are distorted ( say in case of a hurricane/war/famine) the male survival instinct is awakened and typical primitive male behaviour is regarded positive.

When everything is bought back to "normal" we have to supress these primitive reflexes.

I believe that we as knife collectors have a stronger then average primitive response to survival tools ( knives, axes, firearms, survival equipment).
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I'm a chick and I love knives too! Also guns but it's not practical to have one in your pocket at all times, I can actually get away with my dodo at work. I think of them as "sharp jewlry". I can't understand why someone would want diamond rings?!? If I want to wear something pretty I simply accessorize with my rainbow leek!
 
Looks like I'm about 50% by this classification...

SAKguy said:
1. They like to be prepared. (what if they need to cut a seatbelt to help someone get out of a car they are stuck in?)
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I do try to be prepared.

SAKguy said:
2. They like gear.
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I sure do, but knives to me are more than gear.

SAKguy said:
3. They are fairly meticulate and organized.
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Not me.

SAKguy said:
4. They are somewhat anal (I'm very anal).
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Definitely not me - anal retintive classification per Sigmon Freud, that is. Ever see "the anally retentive chef" skits on SNL?

SAKguy said:
5. They like computers and books.
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Yes for sure for me.

SAKguy said:
6. They are pretty much almost the complete opposite of what a non-knife person would think about someone who likes knives.
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Not sure about that one.

SAKguy said:
7. They don't like math.
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Math is beautiful and I love it.

SAKguy said:
8. They like history.
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I like history, for sure.

SAKguy said:
9. They like to read stuff like National Geographic and Popular Science.
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I don't. The last non-work related subscription I had was New Scientist and do not read any magazines at all on a regular basis.

SAKguy said:
10. They are just good all around folks.
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I like to think so.
 
To me, a knife is a tool. Not very interesting, or in need of any kind of in depth analysis. I have more than one wrench, so having more than one knife isn't out of the ordinary or inconsistent behavior for me. Wasn't it Sigmund Freud who is associated with the saying..... "Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar."

So, sometimes a knife is just a knife, or several knives are just several knives.
 
Well, if I were to attribute our love of knives to a particular perspective in Psychology it would be Evolutionary Psychology.

Evolutionary psychology's premise is that patterns of behaviour seen in a species are the product of evolution, just like anatomical characteristics.

Evolutionary psychologists say Natural Selection favors those bahaviours that enhance an organism's reproductive and survival succes.

Isn't our love of knives/survivalism effectively a behaviour that harkens back to a time when we needed these tools to better guarentee our survival and reproductive succes?

Actually, IMO, we still live in those times.

It's a jungle out there!!!

So I think Mongo-man is quite right, but let's include our women folk in the theory aswell!

Having said that Esav, is right, we don't all collect knives for the same reasons.

But I think it's safe to say there are a huge number of people here, me included, who have a strong sense of survivalism and knives are a natural extension of that.
 
well, I think:

there are people who just like tools, and knives are one type of the many they are interested in;

then there are those who find knives to be the male equivalent of jewelry, along with watches - classy accoutrements;

then there are those who were just brought up w/knives, and have always had them, and can't imagine being without the obvious utility of an EDC;

then there are those who are focused on "survivalism" and attracted all types of weapons - psychologically the most charged b/c there is a strong safety/threat issue, probably instilled at a young age, from any one of many circumstances.

For me all 4 of these are at play - but then in addition there's something much harder to explain, which is the POWERFUL aesthetic appeal of a really fine knife - like a beautiful woman - there's just something appealing on a very deep level about a well-designed knife, where I am drawn to it in a way that most people simply aren't, even if they are capable of appreciating the craftsmanship, etc. I think it's just some kind of random tweak of the synaptic pathways. Like, the way a postage stamp can make a philatelist literally squirm with desire . . . it's weird!
 
gitarmac said:
I'm a chick and I love knives too! Also guns but it's not practical to have one in your pocket at all times, I can actually get away with my dodo at work. I think of them as "sharp jewlry".
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That's great. I love the concept of "sharp jewelry". :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
I think that SAKman makes a good point: We are often the opposite of what others would expect us to be. The primordial appeal of a knife as tool, as survival-aid, as instrument of self-defense may be true, but yes: the appeal of a finely crafted knife does evoke feelings in us, and brings out a side of us that is ANYTHING BUT primitive. The passion for materials, craftsmanship, feel, etc, are a highly evolved, and sometimes feminine trait. And yes, to expand on Fishface5's point, like a beautiful woman, knives are nice to look at, but even nicer to hold. there's a tactile element to all this too.
And then, as concerns cutting a seatbelt, I agree. But as concerns defending ones-self, I don't: without intense training, most people are better at defending temselves and their loved ones with 2 "free" hands. Weapons are slow to deploy in the real world, and pose the real threat of injury to the user, and not just to the attacker... this, in any case, is my experience.
And just as Esav said that different people like knives for different reasons, I'm sure different people interpret our passion in different ways...
 
very interesting thread i think a lot of valid points. i can't begin to give an explanation but i think the lizard brain in us as they call it has something to do with it. it makes me think of my wife saying to me i don't like those knives why do you collect them etc. i took her camping it was maybe the second time ever, we were in the tent and heard a noise i told her it was only an animal moving around, she didn't look too convinced and with the most serious expression she ask's me "you have your big bowie with you don't you"?
 
As far as psychological schools of thought go, I'm more in the Cognitive Psychology camp than any other. I have a degree in experimental pyschology but use my computer science skills for work and have not done formal counselling or experimentation since graduating.

Anyway, a cognitive psychologist would reason that a well adjusted person carries a knife because it is a useful tool that enhances the owner's quality of life. Appreciating a tool for the good things it has helped make possible and for its potential is only natural. If collecting knives brings that person some happiness and is not causing problems, don't worry about it.
 
I used this quote from Freud as a sígnature for a while:

A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity.
-- Sigmund Freud, General Introduction to Psychoanalysis

I liked that a lot.

Greets

Christof
 
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