Huddled in our groups, we now look for direction. But who do we put in charge of the map, and are they fit for the job?
Social anthropologist Jamie Tehrani suggests that we humans are a hyper-social species, and therefore look to gain a great deal of our knowledge by copying rather than individual trial-and-error. And with the astronomical rise in popularity of gossip magazines, our focus today is almost exclusively on the rich and famous. Clearly we love a good nose (rhinoplasty is a subject-matter favourite), but do we really want to hear more about Stacey Soloman than the Home Secretary? The issue boils down to our view of prestige.
Prestige is a form of social reward, acknowledging individuals that have made a significant contribution to society. The theory is that other members subsequently copy these revolutionary discoveries, thereby improving the overall state of society. Successive generations then build on this knowledge and advance society further.
So this guy would have been a rock-star back in the day;
Anthropologists even hold prestige as a unique aspect of our species, and universal to our cultures whether you’re from Aberdare or Abu-Dhabi.
In the 21st century however, Jamie worries that the goalposts may have moved, illustrated perfectly with this fast-food analogy;
“We have an evolved preference for sweet-tasting and fatty foods because they motivated our ancestors to seek out ripe fruits and meat, which are rich in essential nutrients. But in today's world of mass-produced confectionery and intensive agriculture, these previously adaptive tastes have led to a massive obesity epidemic and all the health problems it's associated with.
Similarly, we can think of the mass-media as junk food for the mind. Quick. Convenient. But not exactly nutritious. We gorge ourselves on images of wealth and success because they appeal to our appetite for prestige.”
Thanks Jamie. To explore matters further, we recently sent out a tweet that our nation’s sweetheart, Gary Barlow, was at a nearby shop. Clearly the photograph suggested otherwise. Nevertheless, within seconds it was re-tweeted by a hungry fan-base; shocked, surprised, confused. So we took it down before we caused a riot.
Their loyalty was unquestioning. Quite whether Gary Barlow should be their shining light should however be up for discussion.
The issue we face today is that our criteria for ‘success’ is not as clear-cut as the bone-throwing days. However, we still copy what we see because our brains are wired to connect this prestige to our personal adaptation and survival. Fame is the primary source of prestige today (celebrity worship syndrome is now even an issue), and so a vicious cycle is forming; the more we see, the more we copy, and so the more we see…
Perhaps then it’s time we feed our minds the steak that it deserves. A nice, juicy slice of David Bowie to start.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-23046602
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1777554.stm
