“Elizabeth, Queen of the Jungle: Prehistoric Primate Politics in Renaissance England”
Abstract
February 9, 2016
Academics are keenly aware that at present, the Humanities are being buffeted by hostile external forces. An honest appraisal, though, would reveal that in the contemporary university, the liberal arts suffer from enervating internal maladies as well, an important one being a widespread but unfounded bias against science. My essay will be something of a program statement or manifesto in favour of New Humanism or bioculturalism: an approach to the study and teaching of history and literature that – while taking into account specific local ecological factors – is constructively strengthened and informed by recent discoveries in the life sciences. Fields such as cognitive neuroscience, behavioral genetics, and evolutionary psychology are leading to nothing less than a verifiable understanding of universal human nature, one that is richer and more comprehensive than the constructivist, P.C. theories that currently prevail in teaching and publishing about literature, history, and related subjects. The question, then, of whether or not to incorporate these ongoing discoveries is not wholly insignificant.
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