Educational philosophy generally and the Philosophy of Music Education in particular have
been slow to consider in any real depth the findings of those sciences most concerned with
explaining human nature, that is, the attributes (capacities, aptitudes, predilections, appetites)
we have in common because we share the same genome, much of which we also share with
other species. There are several such sciences which may collectively be called Darwinian
Science in that they all take as axiomatic Darwin‘s explanation for how life evolves according
to the law of natural selection – a simple, mindless and purposeless algorithm that has played
out for over four billion years and which continues to do so, driving not only biological
evolution but, as this study argues, cultural evolution as well. Evolutionary Psychology
(including Biomusicology and Evolutionary Aesthetics), Cognitive Neuroscience and Gene-
Culture Coevolution Theory are the overlapping fields that this study draws from in developing
an understanding of the adapted mind useful for engaging with questions germane to the
Philosophy of Music Education, principally those concerning the nature and value of music and
how best it should feature in general education. These are questions that have not hitherto been
addressed from a Darwinian perspective. This study develops such a perspective and applies it
not only to questions around music‘s educational values and possibilities, but to more
encompassing philosophical questions, wherein the goals of music education are made
accountable in relation both to Dewey‘s ideal of society as a function of education, and to an
ecozoic vision of a sustainable planetary habitat of interdependent and interconnected life
forms. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ukzn/oai:http://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za:10413/7792 |
| Date | January 2011 |
| Creators | Robinson, Jeffrey Eric. |
| Contributors | Akuno, Emily A. |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en_ZA |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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