From Veggies to Meat: Man-Apes become Human

[coberst]

From Veggies to Meat: Man-Apes become human

The “man-apes” of Africa (australopithecines) was first discovered in a 1924 dig. This is considered by anthropologists as being one of the most exciting and enlightening finds of modern anthropology. The man-ape, which was first born perhaps a million years ago, represents the transition point of the transformation from ape to human. From the shuffling vegetarian ape to the upright walking carnivore human, this man-ape creature had the brain one-half the size of the modern human.

Most of what we now consider to be human has resulted from the taste for meat developing in this man-ape creature. Hunting for meat requires hunting in groups, which in turn requires better communication between individuals, which in turn requires better tools and weapons, which in turn requires newer forms of social organization, all of which leads to greater intellectual sophistication.

This greater intellectual sophistication has led this newly evolving species into the development of a much larger brain with the sophisticated reasoning ability of the modern human. Meat eating has made humans of us.

“Man developed away from the apes precisely because he had to hunt meat; and if you want to hunt meat you cannot afford yourself the luxury of baboon behavior.”

As a result of our carnivorous appetite we have developed non-primate social relations; we now regulate sexual behavior and develop families requiring new social harmonies. We now acquire our recognition from others not based upon what we take but from what we give. “Unlike the baboon who gluts himself only on food, man nourishes himself mostly on self-esteem…The hunting band lives in the security of internal peace necessary to get food, of the right of all to partake of what food there is, and of the certainty of the provision of regular sexual partners for all.”

We are now beginning to comprehend the fact that humans are primarily unique because wo/man is a total celebration of itself in distinctive self-expression.

Quotes from “The Birth and Death of Meaning”—Ernest Becker

[Turtle]

chimpanzies hunt & eat meat. what evidence do you have that australopithecines were vegetarians?

[Boerseun]

Primates ancestral to humans older than Australopithecines also had canine teeth, the hallmark of carnivores.

Baboons have particularly vicious canines, and are very efficient hunters.

I don't think our love for prime rib has anything to do with our becoming human. Seeing the mental regression of a pack of humans standing around a barbeque with beer in hand, also testifies to this...

[coberst]

Originally Posted by Turtle

chimpanzies hunt & eat meat. what evidence do you have that australopithecines were vegetarians?

Quotes from “The Birth and Death of Meaning”—Ernest Becker

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by coberst

Quotes from “The Birth and Death of Meaning”—Ernest Becker

i didn't read the whole work, but enough to contradict your claim.

Originally Posted by horizons200.org

..Australopithecines, the transitional man-apes, appeared first a million years ago in the grasslands of Southern and Eastern Africa. They were roamers with upright posture, free hands for rudimentary weapons and food. Groups hunted and enjoyed animal flesh....

Ernest Beckers The Birth and Death of Meaning

[coberst]

Originally Posted by Turtle

i didn't read the whole work, but enough to contradict your claim.


Ernest Beckers The Birth and Death of Meaning

Chapter 0ne "The Man-Apes" pages 1-4

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by coberst

Chapter 0ne "The Man-Apes" pages 1-4

yes coberst; my quote is from chapter 1. your contention put forward in the opening post >>

Originally Posted by coberst

Most of what we now consider to be human has resulted from the taste for meat developing in this man-ape creature. Hunting for meat requires hunting in groups, which in turn requires better communication between individuals, which in turn requires better tools and weapons, which in turn requires newer forms of social organization, all of which leads to greater intellectual sophistication.

this is not supported by your reference; moreover, it is contradicted by chimpanzies today, as they hunt and yet they lack our intellectual sophistication. then there is the recent study claiming vegans are smarter, which contradicts the postulation as well. (Vegetarians are more intelligent, says study | News | This is London)

on to the next essay!

[coberst]

Every statement in my OP comes from information derived from the book in question. I never indicated that meat eaters were smarter than veggie eaters. I have a friend who is a vegetarian and he is perhaps even smarter than me.

[maikeru]

Originally Posted by coberst

Most of what we now consider to be human has resulted from the taste for meat developing in this man-ape creature. Hunting for meat requires hunting in groups, which in turn requires better communication between individuals, which in turn requires better tools and weapons, which in turn requires newer forms of social organization, all of which leads to greater intellectual sophistication.

Like Turtle, I find this claim highly suspect.

There's some evidence that the inclusion of omega-3 rich foods, from plant and animal sources, likely led to an expansion of brain power in early humans. (DHA is a basic building block of the nervous system, and often used to create components of the neuronal membrane, axonal myelin sheaths, or regulating signaling molecules. When it is not available, the brain makes an inferior fatty acid that cannot fulfill all the same functions that DHA does, and it can lead to degeneration in the performance and functioning of the brain and eyesight, possibly leading to mental retardation and slowed reflexes.) Some of the richest sources of omega-3 fatty acids come from sea and lakeshore foods, such as seaweeds, clams, oysters, fish, frogs, turtles, bird eggs, etc. The richest plant sources come from flax seed, various nuts like walnuts and almonds, and dark green vegetables. Rather, it may have been the human tendency (and need) to settle or dwell near areas with water resources which allowed for plentiful food resources, competition, trade, and the excess to allow for the development of larger families and eventually communities, with all the cooperation, strife, and relationships that such communities offer.

Hunting groups and exquisite communication between individuals seem poorly adapted solely for collecting food at the seaside and lakeshore. But they do very well to help a group's survival and function when it starts to become more complex, diversify, and engages in relations, trade, or conflict with other social groups.

Becker's view, IMO, finds its root in the early ideas of prehistoric man as mammoth hunters and big-game killers (as seen in the myths swirling about the Clovis and Neanderthal peoples). Current anthropological and archaeological evidence suggest something much less Hollywood.

Why is DHA Essential for Our Eyes and Brains?
Omega-3 fatty acid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wiki quote:

Early humans evolved eating inter-tidal shellfish, while living a shoreline existence in Africa.

Nature paper on view of early humans living by water (need to pay for access):
Access to articles : Nature

The rest of Becker's quotes and claims, following from his initial assertion, are poorly reasoned and trivial; and I just wish to add that quotes in themselves do not provide much useful dialogue.

[coberst]

maikeru

Becker does not imply that the ingestion of meat causes the big brain directly but that the required sophistication combined with the upright posture combined to slowly increase the brain size and sophistication.

I suspect there are many different ideas regarding how the human species evolved from the ape.

We are all called upon to constantly make judgments about such matters and that is why I am such a fanatic about the importance of learning CT (Critical Thinking).

CT is the study of the knowledge, skills, and character traits of good judgment.