7 The origin of symbolic culture

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. CONTENTS v
3. The contributors vii
4. Preface xi
5. 1 An evolutionary approach to human culture 1
6. PART I. THE EVOLUTION OF SOCIETY
7. 2 The evolution of social organization 15
8. 3 Symbolism as reference and symbolism as culture 34
9. 4 Modern hunter-gatherers and early symbolic culture 50
10. PART II. THE EVOLUTION OF ART AND RELIGION
11. 5 Sexual selection for cultural displays 71
12. 6 'Beauty magic': the origins of art 92
13. 7 The origin of symbolic culture 113
14. 8 Symbolism and the supernatural 147
15. PART III. THE EVOLUTION OF LANGUAGE
16. 9 The evolution of language and languages 173
17. 10 Culture, honesty and the freerider problem 194
18. 11 Language variation and the evolution of societies 214
19. 12 Sex and language as pretend-play 228
20. Further reading 248
21. Author index 251
22. Subject index 253