I find your ideas intriguing and wish to subscribe to your newsletter.
That said, I’m not sure the evolution of morality can productively be separated from the evolution of disgust, and disgust does seem to have a non-signaling purpose.
… disgust does seem to have a non-signaling purpose.
It certainly does. It helps to inform you who can be trusted as a coalition partner.
Furthermore, if your feeling of disgust results in your being less nice toward the disgusting party, then your righteousness tends to deter disgusting behavior—at least when you are there to express disapproval. That is a signaling function, to be sure, but it is signalling directed at the target of your disgust, not at third parties.
Also, if I feel disgust in situations that historically correlate with becoming ill—for example, eating rotten food—I’m less likely to become ill. We can be disgusted by things besides other primates, after all.
I find your ideas intriguing and wish to subscribe to your newsletter.
That said, I’m not sure the evolution of morality can productively be separated from the evolution of disgust, and disgust does seem to have a non-signaling purpose.
It certainly does. It helps to inform you who can be trusted as a coalition partner.
Furthermore, if your feeling of disgust results in your being less nice toward the disgusting party, then your righteousness tends to deter disgusting behavior—at least when you are there to express disapproval. That is a signaling function, to be sure, but it is signalling directed at the target of your disgust, not at third parties.
Also, if I feel disgust in situations that historically correlate with becoming ill—for example, eating rotten food—I’m less likely to become ill. We can be disgusted by things besides other primates, after all.