Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id TAA26428 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Sat, 1 Dec 2001 19:54:43 GMT Message-ID: <002101c17aa2$0520a280$eea4bed4@default> From: "Kenneth Van Oost" <Kenneth.Van.Oost@village.uunet.be> To: <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> References: <B5D6E582-E444-11D5-86B0-003065A0F24C@harvard.edu> Subject: Re: circular logic Date: Sat, 1 Dec 2001 20:53:51 +0100 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.00.2314.1300 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.00.2314.1300 Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
----- Original Message -----
From: Wade Smith <wade_smith@harvard.edu>
Hi Wade
You wrote,
> Evolution has selected species with proclivities for imitative
> behaviors, yes. But imitation is _not_ a process of evolution,
> and I haven't a clue why anyone would suppose it could be,
> unless they are lamarckians, huh?
> Therefore, if memetics is applying the evolutionary paradigm to
> culture, imitation should not be a consideration. Again, unless
> lamarckianism enters their purview.
<< I would like to clear up some points here, if I may !
For as far I can recall, I checked my files about Lamarckism briefly, I
do not see any direct reference to imitation.
The nearest I got was in Wilkins " The appearance of lamarckism in the
evolution of culture " and it was not Lamarckism but neo- lamarckism.
Neo- lamarckian processes are rather processes whereby a chef following
[ imitates] a recipe, and then rewrites the recipe on the basis of
the qualities of the meal so created.
This kind of Lamarckism ( type2) does implies a kind of volitional or inten-
tional aspects like Joe Dees did mention, and you wrote rightly that
intention is often laid aside as in ' should've's', but the mistake often
made
by people who have read Lamarck in a translation is that should- have
implies the strong notion of ' desire '.
But Lamarck never spoke about desires, always about needs, les besoins,
a simplistic translation would be ' the need for the I should ' ve's '.
That is a complete other version of the facts, but I see that should- have,
in a " stronger " version can be translated as ' need ',but...
Should have implies a demand, something to have you don 't really need,
something to have to get an advantage, to be the better of someone.
The need for the I should have implies a desperately need for something
you really need, the notion ' intention ' is not the wish or the desire as
such,
but is seen here as the proper workingmechanism to obtain their goal, IMO,
most of the time related to direct survival of the organism, where IMO the
should have survives at the cost of others.
And again IMO, in culture both mechanisms work, we compete with
eachother for free sex, work, free time, money, etc but when we get into
trouble by those same mechanisms we go for the individualistic mode.
Than we go from the collective kin, Darwinian natural selection modius
over to the more individual, more Lamarckian way of life. Than we ask
ourselves the questions, and most of the time they are thrown upon us,
what do we need to survive. And more than often the need to survive
is far more greater than the desire.
The need is organism- bound, the desire is " spielerlei ", something neural
to ease the pain. The desire to stay socially alive with a GSM- phone in
our hand is far more slim than the need. We don 't need the phone to stay
socially alive, we compete on a desire- level.
So, to end, you wrote in a previous post that imitation should not be a
consideration if memetics is applying the evolutionary paradigm to culture.
So, in a kind of circular logic, are you saying here that, if we in memetics
apply the use of imitation we pursue a more Lamarckian way than the
pre- supposed Darwinian- way !?
You just have become a friend of mine, if so !
Regards,
Kenneth
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