Humans are a striking anomaly in the natural world. While we are similar to other mammals in many ways, our
behavior sets us apart. Our unparalleled ability to adapt has allowed us to occupy virtually every habitat on earth
using an incredible variety of tools and subsistence techniques. Our societies are larger, more complex, and more
cooperative than any other mammal's. In this stunning exploration of human adaptation, Peter J. Richerson and Robert
Boyd argue that only a Darwinian theory of cultural evolution can explain these unique characteristics.
Not by Genes Alone offers a radical interpretation of human evolution, arguing that our ecological dominance and
our singular social systems stem from a psychology uniquely adapted to create complex culture. Richerson and Boyd
illustrate here that culture is neither superorganic nor the handmaiden of the genes. Rather, it is essential to
human adaptation, as much a part of human biology as bipedal locomotion. Drawing on work in the fields of anthropology,
political science, sociology, and economics--and building their case with such fascinating examples as kayaks, corporations,
clever knots, and yams that require twelve men to carry them--Richerson and Boyd convincingly demonstrate that culture
and biology are inextricably linked, and they show us how to think about their interaction in a way that yields
a richer understanding of human nature.
In abandoning the nature-versus-nurture debate as fundamentally misconceived, Not by Genes Alone is a truly original
and groundbreaking theory of the role of culture in evolution and a book to be reckoned with for generations to
come.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
1. Culture Is Essential
2. Culture Exists
3. Culture Evolves
4. Culture Is an Adaptation
5. Culture Is Maladaptive
6. Culture and Genes Coevolve
7. Nothing about Culture Makes Sense except in the Light of Evolution
Notes