RE: Why Europe is so Contrary

From: Grant Callaghan (grantc4@hotmail.com)
Date: Sun 08 Dec 2002 - 02:48:16 GMT

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    Jeremy,

    I'm having trouble seeing where what you said had anything to do with what I said. I was talking about the fact that we seem genetically inclined to search for beginings and endings in life as well as in narative. You seem to be talking about societies adapting to their environment. What is the connection? I was positing that the genetic inclination is what guides us to structure our naratives the way we do. You seemed to be saying that the narrative structure is what causes us to search for beginnings and endings.

    What this has to do with societies adjusting to their environment escapes me.

    Confused,

    Grant
    >
    > > > Date: Sun, 08 Dec 2002 07:28:20 +1100
    > > > From: Jeremy Bradley <jeremyb@nor.com.au>
    > > > Subject: RE: Why Europe is so Contrary
    > > >
    > > > At 08:12 AM 7/12/02 -0800, you wrote:
    > > > Snip
    > > >> for example, seems to mark the begining and end of the dynosaurs.
    > > >> Mitocondrial eve marks the beginning of mankind. This way of
    > > >> looking at the universe seems so engrained in our nature that it
    > > >> must occupy some deeper place in our makeup than a cultural meme.
    > > >>
    > > >> Grant
    > > >>
    > > > I don't think so Grant cos some cultures, mostly ones that we have
    > > > defeated, had achieved stability and sustainability within their
    > > > environments. These folk view 'development' as undesirable or bad.
    > > > For them harmony with the nature that they found themselves in was
    > > > the primary goal of existence. In all cases that I have found, such
    > > > cultures have narrative patterning and content which predicates this
    > > > cultural 'norm'. That's the short answer. Jeremy
    > >
    > > Not many cultures that I am aware of have achieved this stability with
    > > their environment, unless you include the possibility of 'die back'
    > > when things are scarce. Most cultures expand to the extent of their
    > > resources. If Hitler was not aware of this we would have been spared
    > > WWII.
    > >
    >Other examples of enviromnetally suicidal indigenous tribes are the
    >ancient Easter Islanders and the Anasazi indians of the American
    >southwest. It is a meme and a myth, kinda like the old 'noble savage',
    >'ancient sage' saw, that older cultures were always wiser.
    > >
    > > Regards
    > >
    > > Steve

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