A Brief History of Romance (And Why It Matters)
Fifth Fact: The ancient Greek philosopher Plato argued that the highest form of love was actually this non-sexual, non-romantic form of attachment to another person, this so-called “brotherly love
F irst Fact: At some point during evolution between plankton and Bon Jovi, apes evolved the ability to become emotionally attached to one another. This emotional attachment would eventually come to be known as “love” and evolution would one day produce a bevy of singers from New Jersey who would make millions writing cheesy songs about it.
Second Fact: Humans evolved the ability to become attached to each other-that is, the ability to love each other-because it helped us survive. 1 This isn't exactly romantic or sexy, but it's true.
We didn't evolve big fangs or huge claws or insane gorilla strength. Instead, we evolved the ability to emotionally bond into communities and families where we became largely inclined to cooperate with one another. 2 These communities and families turned out to be far more effective than any claw or any fang. Humanity soon dominated the planet.
Third Fact: As humans, we instinctively develop loyalty and affection for those who show us the most loyalty and affection. This is all love really is: an irrational degree of loyalty and affection for another person-to the point that we'd let ourselves come to harm or even die for that person. It may sound insane, but it's these symbiotic warm fuzzies that kept the species relying on one another long enough to survive the savannas and populate the planet and invent Netflix.