Re: [asa] An Evolutionary Theory of Right and Wrong

>> 1. Weak -- Human evolutionary history has generated biological /
emotional dispositions that relate to moral choices. Evolutionary
history, however, is not determinative of moral choices or descriptive
of moral systems. There may be references for morality external to
human evolutionary history.
>> 2. Strong -- Human evolutionary history determines the range and
nature of human evolutionary choices. There are no references for
morality external to human evolutionary history.
>> My reading of Hauser, Singer et al. is that they tend towards the
"Strong" view. IMHO, that position is fundamentally inconsistent with
any sort of Christian ethics.

> Why? In fact, if the fundamental commandment is very compatible with kinship selection and reciprocal altruism then I find this hard to accept. These are moral rules which help formulate moral choices, moral laws etc

The problem from a Christian viewpoint with the "strong" view is its
presupposition that everything is exclusively determined
evolutionarily. The claim is made that, because moral standards are
typically roughly in line with principles that could be evolutionarily
favored for group survival, therefore all moral standards are merely
the product of evolution and there is no room for supernatural
factors.

The "weak" view as I interpret it is more what Pim is advocating in
his question.

A significant problem of the strong view is that it explains anything
and thus nothing. Any number of behaviors can potentially find
evolutionary explanations. From my animal behavior class, I remember
on the one hand the claim that the Yanamamos, in a quarrel, took sides
based on relationship to a more precise degree than their language
expressed, yet on the other hand self-sacrifice for some stranger gets
dismissed as a mistaken effort at kin protection.

The weak view, by admitting other factors besides evolution, may
provide a way to choose among the numerous options that are compatible
with promoting evolutionary success, not to mention possibly
indicating that evolutionary success is not always the top priority or
dealing with situations with no clear implications for evolutionary
success.

(PS-It might be useful to define evolutionary success. It is
increasing one's genes in later generations.)

-- 
Dr. David Campbell
425 Scientific Collections
University of Alabama
"I think of my happy condition, surrounded by acres of clams"
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