OK. I think I’ve figured out the miscommunication here. My claim isn’t that these activities select for people who exhibit virtue and depth, but for people smart enough at signalling to pursue “vain” outcomes incidentally through indirect means, and wealthy enough to waste a lot of time doing it.
As a personal example, I am currently learning authentic jazz dancing. On one level this is because I find it intrinsically enjoyable, but on another level I’m less proud of, it’s because many women in my social circle exhibit intense arousal when they see a guy in a sharp suit bust out a sweet Charleston solo.
There are more direct and less time-consuming ways of accomplishing this, but I don’t much care for them. On one level, I don’t much care for them because I find them dull and uninteresting, but on another level I’m less proud of, it’s because I want to signal to a more discerning audience.
OK. I think I’ve figured out the miscommunication here. My claim isn’t that these activities select for people who exhibit virtue and depth, but for people smart enough at signalling to pursue “vain” outcomes incidentally through indirect means, and wealthy enough to waste a lot of time doing it.
As a personal example, I am currently learning authentic jazz dancing. On one level this is because I find it intrinsically enjoyable, but on another level I’m less proud of, it’s because many women in my social circle exhibit intense arousal when they see a guy in a sharp suit bust out a sweet Charleston solo.
There are more direct and less time-consuming ways of accomplishing this, but I don’t much care for them. On one level, I don’t much care for them because I find them dull and uninteresting, but on another level I’m less proud of, it’s because I want to signal to a more discerning audience.