According to Charles Darwin, Evolution is “the theoretical process by which all species develop from earlier forms of life” (Cross, 2009, pp.3) Evolution also involves adaptation, or passing on various traits and characteristics that help increase the likelihood of survival. Going off of this definition alone, it is somewhat understandable why psychologist Steven Pinker would argue that music is “auditory cheesecake” and non-essential to human evolution. Just as Darwin’s view of human evolution is very narrow, so is Pinker’s view of music in human evolution. Several scholars from various disciplines have vocalized their opposition to Pinker’s infamous argument and offer a broader perspective of music’s role in evolution.
One such scholar is archaeologist Steven Mithen. In his book, The Singing Neanderthal, Mithen directly calls out the fallacies of Pinker’s “auditory cheesecake” and states that “music is too different from language to be adequately explained as an evolutionary spin-off” (Mithen, 2005, pp.26). Mithen also argues that both music and
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Freeman points out that even anthropologists and ethnopsychiatrists have “documented the prevalence in preliterate tribes of signing and dancing to the point of physical and psychological collapse during religious and social ceremonies” (Freeman, 2000, pp.419) These tribes perform ceremonies to socialize individuals and bond them to the group, which, from an evolutionary stand point, proves more beneficial to survival as the group (or in this case- tribe) provides a strong support system for the individual. Music “constructs a sense of trust” between members of the group, as feelings of bonding and formation are the “neural basis for social bonding” (Freeman, 2000,