TAHIR WOOD wrote:
> But I think that attempts to conflate historical
> processes, which to me are more about the actualisation of
> potentials of the species being of humanity over a given
> period, with biological evolution per se, are highly
> suspect. Specifically I suspect that they belong more to the
> domain of ideology than to that of science.
Mark posted that paper, so far as I understand it, as a response to
certain metaphysical accounts of "patriarchy" being propounded by
non-marxists on the m-fem list -- accounts which Mark wished to identify
with evolutionary psychology. I have argued with Mark before over what
seems to me an excessive trust in the capacity of sheer weight of
empirical argument to metamorphise into political understanding, and
this paper (interesting I agree) seems to me a case in point. No
accumulation of evolutionary facts can either support or undermine
historical understanding -- and it was historical understanding that was
lacking on the debate on m-fem. He may have been correct in seeing that,
in some ultimate way, the "genetic fallacy" was linked to evolutionary
psychology. But he can post several thousand more screens of biological
data to m-fem and its impact will be zilch because he has misunderstood
the sources of the errors he argues against. That source lies in
misunderstanding of the *present* -- not in misunderstanding of the
past. Thus the practical or immediate result of his efforts will be a
further confirmation of his opponents in their errors. Until their
misunderstanding of the present is corrected, all information about the
past will be interpreted in metaphysical rather than historical terms.
The paper Mark posted might be useful in an argument with Dawkins before
an audience of biologists. It is worse than useless as a response to
those who (crudely) argue that "patriarchy" (understood metaphysically)
"caused" capitalism. I have fwd Tahir's post to m-fem, hoping it will
help to get the debate back on track.
Carrol
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