亚当和夏娃的一天
A Day in the Life of Adam and Eve
TO UNDERSTAND OUR NATURE, HISTORY and 心理, we must get inside the heads of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. For nearly the 整个的 history of our 种类, Sapiens lived as foragers. The past 200 years, during which ever increasing numbers of Sapiens have 获得. their daily bread as 城市的 劳工 and office workers, and the 先前 10,000 years, during which most Sapiens lived as farmers and 牧民, are the 眨 of an eye compared to the tens of thousands of years during which our ancestors hunted and 采集.
The 蓬勃发展的 field of 演化 心理学 认为 that many of our present-day social and psychological 特征 were shaped during this long 前农业 时代. Even today, 学者s in this field claim, our brains and minds are adapted to a life of hunting and gathering. Our eating habits, our conflicts and our sexuality are all the result of the way our hunter-gatherer minds interact with our current 后工业化的 environment, with its mega-cities, 飞机, telephones and computers. This environment gives us more 物资 resources and longer lives than those enjoyed by any previous generation, but it often makes us feel 疏远, depressed and pressured. To understand why, evolutionary psychologists argue, we need to 钻研 into the hunter-gatherer world that shaped us, the world that we 下意识地 still 栖息.
Why, for example, do people 贪婪地吃 on high-calorie food that is doing little good to their bodies? Today’s 富裕的 societies are in the 阵痛 of a 瘟疫 of 肥胖症, which is rapidly spreading to developing countries. It’s a 谜题 why we 狂欢 on the sweetest and greasiest food we can find, until we consider the eating habits of our 觅食者 祖先. In the 大草原 and forests they 聚居, high-calorie sweets were extremely 稀有的 and food in general was in short supply. A typical forager 30,000 years ago had access to only one type of 甜甜的 food – 成熟的 fruit. If a Stone Age woman came across a tree 呻吟ing with 无花果, the most 明智的 thing to do was to eat as many of them as she could on the 当场, before the local 狒狒 队 picked the tree 光秃的. The 本能反应 to 贪婪地吃 on high-calorie food was hard-wired into our 基因. Today we may be living in high-rise 公寓 with over-stuffed 制冷机, but our DNA still thinks we are in the 大草原. That’s what makes us 勺子 down an 一整 桶 of Ben & Jerry’s（一种冰淇凌） when we find one in the 冷藏柜 and wash it down with a 大杯 可乐.
This ‘gorging gene’ theory is widely accepted. Other theories are far more 备受争议的. For example, some evolutionary psychologists argue that ancient 觅食 bands were not 构成 of 核心的 families 中心 on 一夫一妻制的 夫妻. Rather, foragers lived in 公社 缺乏的 of private property, monogamous relationships and even 父亲. In such a band, a woman could have sex and form 亲密的 纽带 with several men (and women) 同时, and all of the band’s adults 合作 in 养育 its children. Since no man knew 明确 which of the children were his, men showed equal concern for all 小家伙.
Such a social structure is not an Aquarian 乌托邦. It’s well documented among animals, 特别是 our closest relatives, the 黑猩猩 and 倭黑猩猩. There are even a number of present-day human cultures in which 集体的 父亲 is 实行, as for example among the Barí Indians. According to the 信仰 of such 社会, a child is not born from the 精子 of a single man, but from the 积累 of 精子 in a woman’s 子宫. A good mother will make a point of having sex with several different men, especially when she is 怀孕的, so that her child will enjoy the 特质 (and 父亲的 关心) 不仅 of the best hunter, but also of the best storyteller, the strongest 勇士 and the most 善解人意的 lover. If this sounds 愚蠢的, bear in mind that before the development of modern 胚胎的 studies, people had no solid evidence that babies are always 生育ed by a single father rather than by many.
The 支持者 of this ‘ancient commune’ theory argue that the 经常发生的 不忠行为s that characterise modern 婚姻, and the high rates of 离婚, not to 提及 the 复杂多样的 of 心理的 复杂症状 from which both children and adults 遭受, all result from 迫使 humans to live in 核心的 families and 一夫一妻制的 relationships that are 格格不入的 with our 生物的 software.
Many scholars 强烈 reject this theory, 坚持 that both 一夫一妻制 and the 组建 of 核心的 families are core human 行为. Though ancient hunter-gatherer societies tended to be more 公有的 and 平等的 than modern societies, these researchers argue, they were 然而 组成 of 独立的 单元s, each 包含 a 会忌妒的 夫妻 and the children they 持有 in common. This is why today 一夫一妻制的 relationships and nuclear families are the 规范 in the 广阔的 大多数 of cultures, why men and women tend to be very 占有欲的 of their partners and children, and why even in modern states such as North Korea and Syria 政治的 权力 passes from father to son.
In order to resolve this 争论 and understand our sexuality, society and politics, we need to learn something about the living conditions of our ancestors, to 查看 how Sapiens lived between the Cognitive Revolution of 70,000 years ago, and the start of the Agricultural Revolution about 12,000 years ago.
A Day in the Life of Adam and Eve
TO UNDERSTAND OUR NATURE, HISTORY and psychology, we must get inside the heads of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. For nearly the entire history of our species, Sapiens lived as foragers. The past 200 years, during which ever increasing numbers of Sapiens have obtained their daily bread as urban labourers and office workers, and the preceding 10,000 years, during which most Sapiens lived as farmers and herders, are the blink of an eye compared to the tens of thousands of years during which our ancestors hunted and gathered.
The flourishing field of evolutionary psychology argues that many of our present-day social and psychological characteristics were shaped during this long pre-agricultural era. Even today, scholars in this field claim, our brains and minds are adapted to a life of hunting and gathering. Our eating habits, our conflicts and our sexuality are all the result of the way our hunter-gatherer minds interact with our current post-industrial environment, with its mega-cities, aeroplanes, telephones and computers. This environment gives us more material resources and longer lives than those enjoyed by any previous generation, but it often makes us feel alienated, depressed and pressured. To understand why, evolutionary psychologists argue, we need to delve into the hunter-gatherer world that shaped us, the world that we subconsciously still inhabit.
Why, for example, do people gorge on high-calorie food that is doing little good to their bodies? Today’s affluent societies are in the throes of a plague of obesity, which is rapidly spreading to developing countries. It’s a puzzle why we binge on the sweetest and greasiest food we can find, until we consider the eating habits of our forager forebears. In the savannahs and forests they inhabited, high-calorie sweets were extremely rare and food in general was in short supply. A typical forager 30,000 years ago had access to only one type of sweet food – ripe fruit. If a Stone Age woman came across a tree groaning with figs, the most sensible thing to do was to eat as many of them as she could on the spot, before the local baboon band picked the tree bare. The instinct to gorge on high-calorie food was hard-wired into our genes. Today we may be living in high-rise apartments with over-stuffed refrigerators, but our DNA still thinks we are in the savannah. That’s what makes us spoon down an entire tub of Ben & Jerry’s when we find one in the freezer and wash it down with a jumbo Coke.
This ‘gorging gene’ theory is widely accepted. Other theories are far more contentious. For example, some evolutionary psychologists argue that ancient foraging bands were not composed of 3 A Day in the Life of Adam and Eve TO UNDERSTAND OUR NATURE, HISTORY and psychology, we must get inside the heads of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. For nearly the entire history of our species, Sapiens lived as foragers. The past 200 years, during which ever increasing numbers of Sapiens have obtained their daily bread as urban labourers and office workers, and the preceding 10,000 years, during which most Sapiens lived as farmers and herders, are the blink of an eye compared to the tens of thousands of years during which our ancestors hunted and gathered.
The flourishing field of evolutionary psychology argues that many of our present-day social and psychological characteristics were shaped during this long pre-agricultural era. Even today, scholars in this field claim, our brains and minds are adapted to a life of hunting and gathering. Our eating habits, our conflicts and our sexuality are all the result of the way our hunter-gatherer minds interact with our current post-industrial environment, with its mega-cities, aeroplanes, telephones and computers. This environment gives us more material resources and longer lives than those enjoyed by any previous generation, but it often makes us feel alienated, depressed and pressured. To understand why, evolutionary psychologists argue, we need to delve into the hunter-gatherer world that shaped us, the world that we subconsciously still inhabit.
Why, for example, do people gorge on high-calorie food that is doing little good to their bodies? Today’s affluent societies are in the throes of a plague of obesity, which is rapidly spreading to developing countries. It’s a puzzle why we binge on the sweetest and greasiest food we can find, until we consider the eating habits of our forager forebears. In the savannahs and forests they inhabited, high-calorie sweets were extremely rare and food in general was in short supply. A typical forager 30,000 years ago had access to only one type of sweet food – ripe fruit. If a Stone Age woman came across a tree groaning with figs, the most sensible thing to do was to eat as many of them as she could on the spot, before the local baboon band picked the tree bare. The instinct to gorge on high-calorie food was hard-wired into our genes. Today we may be living in high-rise apartments with over-stuffed refrigerators, but our DNA still thinks we are in the savannah. That’s what makes us spoon down an entire tub of Ben & Jerry’s when we find one in the freezer and wash it down with a jumbo Coke.
This ‘gorging gene’ theory is widely accepted. Other theories are far more contentious. For example, some evolutionary psychologists argue that ancient foraging bands were not composed of nuclear families centred on monogamous couples. Rather, foragers lived in communes devoid of private property, monogamous relationships and even fatherhood. In such a band, a woman could have sex and form intimate bonds with several men (and women) simultaneously, and all of the band’s adults cooperated in parenting its children. Since no man knew definitively which of the children were his, men showed equal concern for all youngsters.
Such a social structure is not an Aquarian utopia. It’s well documented among animals, notably our closest relatives, the chimpanzees and bonobos. There are even a number of present-day human cultures in which collective fatherhood is practised, as for example among the Barí Indians. According to the beliefs of such societies, a child is not born from the sperm of a single man, but from the accumulation of sperm in a woman’s womb. A good mother will make a point of having sex with several different men, especially when she is pregnant, so that her child will enjoy the qualities (and paternal care) not merely of the best hunter, but also of the best storyteller, the strongest warrior and the most considerate lover. If this sounds silly, bear in mind that before the development of modern embryological studies, people had no solid evidence that babies are always sired by a single father rather than by many.
The proponents of this ‘ancient commune’ theory argue that the frequent infidelities that characterise modern marriages, and the high rates of divorce, not to mention the cornucopia of psychological complexes from which both children and adults suffer, all result from forcing humans to live in nuclear families and monogamous relationships that are incompatible with our biological software.
Many scholars vehemently reject this theory, insisting that both monogamy and the forming of nuclear families are core human behaviours. Though ancient hunter-gatherer societies tended to be more communal and egalitarian than modern societies, these researchers argue, they were nevertheless comprised of separate cells, each containing a jealous couple and the children they held in common. This is why today monogamous relationships and nuclear families are the norm in the vast majority of cultures, why men and women tend to be very possessive of their partners and children, and why even in modern states such as North Korea and Syria political authority passes from father to son.
In order to resolve this controversy and understand our sexuality, society and politics, we need to learn something about the living conditions of our ancestors, to examine how Sapiens lived between the Cognitive Revolution of 70,000 years ago, and the start of the Agricultural Revolution about 12,000 years ago.