Have humans evolved to be vulnerable?
In Hidden Depths, Dr Penny Spikins demonstrates that by looking into the distant archaeological record, and into the evolutionary processes which drove our minds and emotions, we find hidden depths of emotional vulnerability which have driven human connection.
Some of our earliest ancestors, from 2 million years onwards, were driven by their emotional sensitivities to care for those within their group who were suffering from illnesses and injuries, as well as to share care for infants, to share food, and to share the risks from predators or from dangerous hunting. Dr Spikins argues that new emotional sensitivities driving compassion, generosity and trust made early groups of humans resilient to ecological changes.
After 300,000 years ago, further changes in emotional sensitivities motivated human ancestors to reach out beyond their local group to help unfamiliar others. Once again, increasing sensitivities and new social tolerance drove ecological resilience, albeit bringing increased vulnerabilities, such as to loneliness or to lack of belonging. These changes gave us both our need and capacity to reach out, not only to friends but also to social animals and even material things around us for comfort.
This new narrative of the significance of human emotions, and of emotional vulnerabilities, to human success moves away from descriptions of human evolution as exceptional and progressive and towards an understanding of our human evolutionary past as developing alongside similar changes in other highly social animals.