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Roaming Rider

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Dec 29, 2009, 9:41:47 AM12/29/09
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theories on evolution of love?

/RR

Stephen Wolstenholme

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Dec 29, 2009, 9:59:00 AM12/29/09
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On Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:41:47 -0800 (PST), Roaming Rider
<intereste...@live.se> wrote:

>theories on evolution of love?
>

I think it must have started with the relationship between female
parent and child. Then female and male provider, then male and child
and then male and female provider.

Steve

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Dan Listermann

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Dec 29, 2009, 9:56:26 AM12/29/09
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"Roaming Rider" <intereste...@live.se> wrote in message
news:5f14d026-1b08-4c36...@z41g2000yqz.googlegroups.com...

> theories on evolution of love?
>
> /RR
>
Sexual reproduction.


.

R Brown

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Dec 29, 2009, 10:05:43 AM12/29/09
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"Roaming Rider" <intereste...@live.se> wrote in message
news:5f14d026-1b08-4c36...@z41g2000yqz.googlegroups.com...
> theories on evolution of love?
>
> /RR
>
"Love" is a slippery word, but evolutionary psychologist discuss it.
Essentially bonding with others has considerable (essential) selection value
for a species born as defenceless as we are. This value extends beyond
mother and child to include kin and tribe. The dynamics of group selection
theory are a lively area of research. Religious belief is probably a
dysfunction of our wiring for love. Our capacity to bond with one another
also allows us to bond with imagined "super parents" (gods of all sorts). We
have a great, childish capacity to personify things and events in our lives
and imbue them with intentionality. Implying intentionality has great and
immediate survival benefit. If you don't understand the intentionality of a
tiger or your enemy you'll be dead pretty quick. Personification and
intentionality of objects and organisms lead, inevitably to magical thinking
about how things work. Coupled with our capacity to rationalize and you get
supernatural explanations for just about everything. Explanations become
more refined and codified within in-groups and shared as competing memes
within and between populations. The acceptance of these memes can happen
very quickly as witnessed by the rapid emergence of cargo cults in the
Pacific and even of religions like Mormonism.
So there you have it. Religion is simply a dysfunctional byproduct of our
inate ability to love. We have expended (wasted?) huge amounts of time and
energy on our religions. Some humans have devoted their lives to it and have
endured all maner of hardhip (eg: celebacy) to express their devotion. If
that isn't love, what is?

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