The thesis combines sociocultural anthropology with Darwinism. My ethnographic fieldwork centres on a Pentecostal church in contemporary Britain. Members engage in ecstatic worship that includes glossolalia or speaking in tongues. Utilising a cross-cultural perspective, I suggest that this form of worship is typical in conditions of economic and political deprivation, and in terms of vocalisations, gestures and altered mental states, represents a powerful means of status elevation. I further suggest that ecstatic trance can be seen as an extreme form of "handicap" in Zahavi's sense, as essentially a sociopolitical signal of counter-dominance rather than catharsis (the psychological view) or the expression of cultural themes (the interpretive anthropology view). I regard trance as essentially pathomimetic, i.e. modelled on such pathologies as epilepsy, constituting in other words a kind of "sham epilepsy" which, in rendering the individual temporarily 'insane' and incapacitated, represents the ultimate in collective handicapping. This enables immensely strong bonds to be forged between trance participants. Furthermore, Pentecostalism's strong de-emphasis on material symbols of sacredness and emphasis on God being experienced through performance, which I suggest is typical of nascent religion, allows us to infer the existence of religious activity long before images of divinity began being produced as external figurines or art forms around 35,000 year ago. Finally, the peculiar mental concomitants of trance, which I view as part of a uniquely human capacity I term the alien imagination, are shown to engender highly creative supernatural thought. I propose that trance behaviour may have acted as a 'kick-start' in the evolutionary emergence of novel technological and conceptual frameworks. I thus oppose the cognitivism of writers such as Mithen and favour social factors as causal in cognitive evolution.

No / In this paper I examine how Darwinian thought has been applied to understanding the evolutionary origins of depression. The application of evolutionary theory has produced a significant number of adaptive hypotheses for the origins of depression. Some of the main models are discussed. The ‘separation-distress’ emotional system described Watt and Panksepp (Neuropsychoanalysis 11:7–51, 2009), provides a convincing evolutionary-conserved neurochemical and emotional system which may form the basis of a depressive response in humans. By reflecting on these models, I discuss whether depression in humans can be considered to be an adaptation in evolutionary terms, or whether it is a maladaptive response to adverse life events.

Thesis--M. Phil., University of Hong Kong, 1980.

Diss. Stockholm : Stockholms universitet, 2008.

Thesis (doctoral)--Leipzig, 1912. / Vita. Bibliography: p. 93.

Boston University. University Professors Program Senior theses. / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-02

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B.A.

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