A Naturalistic Theory of Archaic Moral Orders

Abstract. Cultural evolution, producing group-level adaptations, is more problematic than the cultural evolution of individually confirmable skills, but it probably has occurred. The “conformist transmission,” described by Boyd and Richerson (1985), leads local social units to become homogeneous in...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Campbell, Donald T. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Open Library of Humanities$s2024- 1991
In: Zygon
Year: 1991, Volume: 26, Issue: 1, Pages: 91-114
Further subjects:B Supernatural beliefs
B Cultural Evolution
B archaic civilizations
B Sociobiology
B genetic competition among the cooperators
B human survival
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Summary:Abstract. Cultural evolution, producing group-level adaptations, is more problematic than the cultural evolution of individually confirmable skills, but it probably has occurred. The “conformist transmission,” described by Boyd and Richerson (1985), leads local social units to become homogeneous in anadaptive, as well as adaptive, beliefs. The resulting intragroup homogeneity and inter-group heterogeneity makes possible a cultural selection of adaptive group ideologies. All archaic urban, division-of-labor social organizations had to overcome aspects of human nature produced by biological evolution, due to the predicament of genetic competition among the cooperators. The universal norms found in archaic moral systems are seen as curbs to this human nature, reinforced by beliefs in invisible sanction systems and rewarding and punishing afterlives (as in heaven or reincarnation). Perhaps the ubiquity of lavishly wasteful royal funerals is to be explained as contributing to this function.
ISSN:1467-9744
Contains:Enthalten in: Zygon
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9744.1991.tb00804.x