Sublime

Like some insect societies, but unlike other great apes, Homo sapiens became eusocial, or highly social. At the same time, in-group sociality was matched by aggression toward out-groups. Cooperation within the group was forged by war between groups.

“There seems to be no question but that the human male would be promiscuous in his choice of sexual partners throughout the whole of his life if there were no social restrictions.”27 For most men and many women, sexual monogamy leads inexorably to monotomy. It’s important to understand this process has nothing to do with the attractiveness of the

his human flock, and it was thus right and natural for his subjects to obey him

Since women produced only one egg each month and were fertile for only a brief period, and since they were highly vulnerable and increasingly dependent during pregnancy—as were their children during their early years—it was in their interest, and those of their offspring, to secure a mate who had the strength and social status to protect them and

we are still prey animals underneath, cautious and vigilant, and highly dependent on one another for safety. That’s why our emotional brains so closely monitor our relationships to our families, friends, and associates. Threats to our personal or social well-being, real or imagined, send danger signals down through the oldest, most primitive part

In the limbic system, signals are decoded according to four fundamental programs, known as the Four F’s—fear, feeding, fighting, and fornicating.