Are you saying it was justified for [insert historical monster] to do [atrocity] because it would make him reproductively successful?
Evolution doesn’t define morality. We evolved to pass our genes on, but now that we’ve evolved smart brains, we can choose to do other stuff.
Having eight or ten children might maximize my impact on the gene pool, but that’s not my personal goal. Likewise, I don’t like it that other people’s children are dying from malnutrition and disease, so I can take steps to prevent that even though it doesn’t help my reproductive fitness.
Evo psych is a good reason for squirrels and monkeys to do what they do, but humans know better. We’re capable of thinking through the effects of, say, rape and deciding we find it unacceptable even if it’s in someone’s genetic interests.
That said, I’m not sure a book on evo psych will improve matters between you and your dad. When I dropped religion, my mother was really upset partly because she believed I would be left without a moral system. You need to decide what you find moral, and eventually your dad may accept that you still have morals. (Or he might not.)
Evolution doesn’t define morality. We evolved to pass our genes on, but now that we’ve evolved smart brains, we can choose to do other stuff.
Having eight or ten children might maximize my impact on the gene pool, but that’s not my personal goal. Likewise, I don’t like it that other people’s children are dying from malnutrition and disease, so I can take steps to prevent that even though it doesn’t help my reproductive fitness.
Evo psych is a good reason for squirrels and monkeys to do what they do, but humans know better. We’re capable of thinking through the effects of, say, rape and deciding we find it unacceptable even if it’s in someone’s genetic interests.
That said, I’m not sure a book on evo psych will improve matters between you and your dad. When I dropped religion, my mother was really upset partly because she believed I would be left without a moral system. You need to decide what you find moral, and eventually your dad may accept that you still have morals. (Or he might not.)